The lithium price has soared as EVs have gained market share and demand for stationary storage (to "firm" renewable) has grown. So the search for alternatives is heating up. BYD is rumoured to be putting sodium-ion batteries in their cheaper cars, starting in Q2 next year.
But aluminium-ion batteries, which may solve the lithium problem, are close to commercialisation. They have several advantages:
- They don't require rare-earth metals
- Can exchange up to 3 electrons per ion, compared to lithium's 1, meaning a higher energy density and volumetric capacity (about 4 times lithium's)
- Much cheaper, especially at current lithium prices
- Safer, because it's less likely to catch fire
- 70 times faster charging rate---the limiting factor isn't how much power the battery can take, but the cable charging the battery
- the heating induced by fast-charging isn't an issue, which means we won't need complicated cooling and battery management systems.
- Aluminium-ion performance is now as good as lithium-ion with 300 Wh (watt-hours)/kilogram achieved in the laboratory.
- Aluminium is the most abundant metal in the Earth's crust, far more abundant than lithium
Of course, all is not plain sailing. But, as so often with technological advances, necessity will drive innovation.
Here's a nice video from "Undecided" by Matt Ferrell explaining about this Ozzie battery advance, with a tag-on short section on similar research at MIT.
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