The market leader in batteries, the Chinese company CATL, has announced the second generation of its sodium-ion batteries with enhanced specifications.
The new batteries promise to maintain their performance even at negative temperatures of 40 degrees, and CATL has announced plans to begin experimental production of this new battery as early as 2025, with mass production set for 2027.
Sodium-ion batteries have been under development for several years, and the first generation of this type of battery has already been installed in some production vehicles.
Similar to lithium-ion batteries, sodium-ion batteries come with advantages and disadvantages, with one of the biggest advantages being cost, considering that sodium is much more abundant and easier to obtain than lithium, and does not require rare metals, making them easier to recycle and also safer due to their greater stability.
On the other hand, sodium-ion batteries have a lower energy density than lithium ones, with the best cells of the first generation falling below 160 Wh per kg.
However, CATL claims that the second-generation sodium-ion batteries allow for an energy density above 200 Wh/kg, and that the new sodium-ion cells can discharge normally even at temperatures as low as minus 40 degrees, which is an important step considering that lithium-ion batteries do not show positive performance below 15 degrees Celsius. It should be noted that cold temperatures affect charging and discharging performance, which is why the thermal system needs to compensate by increasing the temperature of the battery pack as needed.
CATL plans to launch the new sodium-ion cells next year for an experimental phase and to start mass production of the second generation of sodium-ion batteries in 2027.
