In a significant leap forward for battery technology, researchers at The University of Texas at Austin have developed a new sodium-based battery that promises to quickly change the game in matters of safety, affordability, and performance. The team, spearheaded by Arumugam Manthiram, a professor at the Cockrell School of Engineering, announced their breakthrough in a recent publication in Nature Energy, showcasing a battery that employs a solid diluent to quell the risk of fire hazards commonly associated with high-performance batteries.
Despite the scarcity of battery fires, the risks have begun to significantly increase with the ubiquity of battery-reliant gadgets. The Texas-based research team has applied a salt-based diluent, specifically sodium nitrate, to effectively minimize these hazards. This has enabled them to use only one nonflammable solvent in the electrolyte, creating a more stable and safer battery. "Batteries catch fire because the liquid solvents in the electrolyte don't get along with other parts of the battery," Manthiram told The University of Texas at Austin News. "We have reduced that risk from the equation to create a safer, more stable battery."
As an added benefit, this innovation stands out as a cost-effective alternative to the lithium-ion batteries that are the current mainstay in mobile devices, laptops, and electric vehicles. The sodium battery not only boasts a competitive edge in terms of affordability but also in terms of its environmental footprint. With a supply of sodium that is widely available in the Earth's oceans, it provides an environmentally friendly and easily accessible resource as compared to the mining of lithium, which has raised concerns over groundwater use, pollution, and carbon emissions.
Performance metrics of the new battery are also notable, retaining 80% of its capacity over 500 charge cycles, a standard that matches the current lithium-ion batteries used in smartphones. "Here we show a sodium battery that is safe and inexpensive to produce, without losing out on performance," Manthiram remarked in the university's newsletter. This level of durability and longevity could quickly make inroads over time into markets currently dominated by lithium-ion variants.
Further promoting this battery's eco-friendliness and affordability, it eschews not only lithium but also cobalt, an element typically found in batteries but plagued with sourcing issues related to environmental and humanitarian costs. Instead, the battery is composed of readily available materials such as iron, manganese, and nickel. This battery's potential extends beyond sodium batteries, with the researchers indicating that the technique could also be adapted to improve existing lithium-ion cells, though this would require different material considerations.
