With real uncertainty clouding the world’s supply of lithium, alternative battery chemistries will be crucial as we continue our uptake of electric vehicles and mobile devices. One exciting candidate in this space is sodium-ion, and a research team in Russia has developed a novel battery of this ilk that boasts some impressive energy density, and may also be resistant to low temperatures.
“Both our new material and the one the industry has recently deployed are called sodium-vanadium phosphate fluoride – they’re made of atoms of the same elements,” said Skoltech’s Stanislav Fedotov, study author. “What makes them different is how those atoms are arranged and in what ratio they are contained in the compound.”
The team deployed their novel cathode material in a coin-cell configuration sodium-ion battery and put it to the test, finding that it offered an increase in energy density of up to 15% compared to the current leading designs. Further, the new material could also allow sodium-ion batteries to function in colder climates, according to the researchers.