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Whenever I hear "salt" and "battery" in the same sentence, I think of Sodium Ion batteries. Similar to lithium (neighbours on the periodic table), even cheaper
by patrickk 5y ago
Whenever I hear "salt" and "battery" in the same sentence, I think of Sodium Ion batteries. Similar to lithium (neighbours on the periodic table), even cheaper and more abundant, and because sodium is heavier it should be strongly considered for stationary storage.
I guess I'd need to consult that skeptical HN list on new battery tech to understand why it's not widely deployed yet!
- maxerickson 5y agoThe huge investment in lithium-ion has stayed ahead of any materials cost advantage (so lithium-ion has been cheaper for all applications, in addition to being better for applications where density and weight matter).
- patrickk 5y agoIndeed, good point. A shame really, as sodium could ease supply constraints and take up some of the burden instead of just lithium.
- Symmetry 5y agoNifty. At first I thought you were talking about molten sodium batteries, which have been around for a while but inconveniently have to be kept at high temperatures to keep the sodium liquid and so haven't seen much adoption. But yeah, sodium ion batteries are now a thing and don't have that limitation.