A battery being developed in China is built to endure well below sub-zero temperatures, a boon for electric vehicle drivers in areas like America's Northeast.
InsideEVs reported that the Contemporary Amperex Technology, or CATL, second-generation sodium-ion power pack can operate well at minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit. It's a big improvement on the more mild mercury range for typical batteries. The report listed the ideal temperature at between 60 degrees and 110 degrees for lithium-ion cells.
Scientific American reported that at 20 degrees — a fairly common reading during a New England winter, for example — an EV's driving range drops by about 12%.
But better battery science is improving range and charge speeds at a fascinating pace. CATL's latest sodium-ion innovation joins inventions elsewhere that include potassium-based batteries and cells that operate with help from cow hair.
Sodium batteries are being developed as a lithium alternative by multiple companies, including EV juggernaut BYD. Sodium ions act similar to lithium ones while inside a pack, moving between the electrodes through the electrolyte. Advantages include cheaper materials, a cleaner manufacturing process, and a wider temperature range, all per InsideEVs, "which could help address some of the lingering concerns regarding the extreme weather performance of batteries," Suvrat Kothari wrote.
CleanTechnica noted that lithium packs typically have better energy density, or stored-up power per pound, than sodium ones. But the science is improving on that front, as well.
For its part, CATL has long been making battery-related headlines. Data collector Statista listed the Chinese company as the world's largest pack provider. Recent announcements include impressive milestones for batteries made for hybrid vehicles.
If used in future EVs, the sodium-ion research can help convince more motorists to switch to a cleaner ride, which can save around $1,500 a year in gas and maintenance costs, as well as reduce thousands of pounds of air pollution annually. The latter point is highlighted by government data, noting that heat-trapping fume production is realized even when fossil fuels provide most of the electricity to charge the batteries.
The impact of air pollution is being noticed even in our oceans. Experts interviewed by the Guardian linked a combination of human-caused overheating and natural weather patterns to perilous warming in the North Sea, a threat to marine life.
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Temperature-flexible batteries developed by CATL might soon be part of the solution to help cool our planet, if experts there succeed in commercializing the latest salt-based research.
"Extreme heat and extreme cold are both enemies of a lithium-ion battery," Kothari wrote for InsideEVs. "At least in theory, sodium ions solve this problem as they're far more resilient."
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