"Why is China so far ahead?" China is not putting billions in wars and genocides. They are working hard for decades.

The future of sodium is in grid and home. The future of lithium is in higher performance transportation. There is plenty of room for both to develop at a robust pace over the next few decades.

Sodium batteries advantage in the cold ❄️. Up to -30C. Without losing charge like lithium.

“Pull ahead”? Lmao. Germany hasn’t even entered the race. 😅

China is ahead in LFP, lithum ion and now in sodium batteries. I think I can see a pattern.

Nobody is stopping Europe from competition. China is not the one yelled at UK to tell them to stop using Huawei 5g. You are free to compete if you wanted. There are plenty of lithium around. Just that the Lithium technology is more mature while sodium and other are still being tested. You can come up with 10,000 possible alternatives but you have to be able to commercialize them. And in the new technology, all countries are starting at the same point. There are no mature technology Europe or US control the patents. Fair competition is not something US and Europe like.

There’s nothing like talking about Chinese technologies but interviewing Europeans to give feedback about it. Typical European documentaries.

I really appreciating hard working Chinese people

The big problem with this is that europe is still dreaming while china is now selling lifepo4 batteries on people who DIY here in south east asia..especially on solar storage applications. Dont know how europe could catch.

In recent times i see DW news is so obsessed with china somebody is really getting jealous 😄

are you people high? they're already ahead of everyone

the most crucial point in the whole reporting is "but we can not get any figures..." that shows how good your reporting 🎉

The short answer is, yes.

It's hard work that keeps you ahead.

The reporter is conflating a lot between "Sodium" and "Salt", that's like using "Water" and "Hydrogen" interchangeably. Besides that, thanks for reporting on this. We really need a global push to build much bigger grid-storage, and Sodium-ion can definitely help quite a lot.

Car companies are all focusing on longer range & faster charging Lithium battery that priced average EV out of the reach of many people. Sodium battery should fill the gap for a huge market of working class folks who only need

The sodium can be taken from all kinds of places, including desalination plants.

I put together a power tool battery with sodium ion cells. The lower voltage per cell makes them not drop-in replacements. They can't discharge as fast as lithium ion, so high current applications (draining a battery in 30 min. or less) are a bad fit. Electric cars aren't great: sure you expect the battery to last multiple hours of driving, but normal accelerations are short-term high current uses. Home energy, where a large battery is supposed to slowly drain over 24 hours or so, would be my choice for this chemistry.

what a rambling report

Sodium probably makes more sense for large storage, like on power grids, due to it's heavier weight and larger volume. The ability to recharge more times without losing capacity is also a plus for this type of application. Over time, the tech will improve and then make it into smaller devices.

Sodium batteries are already mass replacing the lead acid batteries in two wheels vehicles that doesn’t need extreme performance and mostly used in the cities. There are already DIY shops can replace the old lead acid batteries to sodium batteries on your old electric scooters. Those scooters were designed for using lead acid batteries which has less energy density compared to sodium batteries so they have enough room to install. And the new batteries can provide longer life, can be discharged to 0%, and perform better in the cold weather.

DW News likes to talk about China. Why don't you share more news on Germany? I would love to hear more about Germany 😊

Another advantage that sodium batteries have over lithium batteries is that they’re more Weather resistant. While they may have overall less charge than lithium, they actually hold their charge in cold weather and are less volatile in warm weathers. This is incredibly important for colder countries as well as incredibly warm countries. Lithium loses a third of its charge in colder temperatures and is more fire prone than salt batteries.

BYD just launch next gen blade battery that can reach 1.000 km in single charge, America and Europe needs to pay attention 👀

We need cheap, small and light car with removable batteries to charge at home. Chinese understood it better than European companies.

No, just today’s lithium reserves of 98m tons is enough for 7 billion BEVs. New reserves cropping up all the time. Yes, lithium will “cut it” but yes sodium is much cheaper and far easier to get.

It's simple. What will be the price of a sodium battery compared to a lithium battery? And what the experts forgot to mention in the storage possibilities is houses and appartment buildings. Cheap storage possibilities will revolutionize household energy.

WRT: Batteries, EVs, solar (future energy): China seems to have a more sane and cohesive big-picture structure. I'm from the West and mostly I see the market just doing style changes while really sitting on our hands in the R&D segment. (Apple, SpaceX & Tesla are exceptions).

The price of lithium has crashed.

Thanks for this story, I wasn't aware of this technology. Cars and portable energy are all the rage right now, but what about a story on vandium flow technology and the applications for homes and whole towns? It seems promising.

Two months later, I was working as a sodium ion battery engineer in a Chinese company called Zonergy. I think sodium ion batteries first replaced lead-acid batteries in the market, that is, low-speed vehicles and large-scale energy storage. It can complement the advantages of lithium ion batteries.

Salt and sodium are two different things.

Thanks China bringing us into Eco World and giving us high quality cars.

Germany auto manufacturers have been in recently years subservient to with China and they forgot about their own destination 😂😂😂

Just by the impact to the environment on refinery lithium I'd prefer to use Sodium battery, in case the technology of the sodium battery can afford a full day use before recharge.

Sodium-ion batteries with Prussian Blue (ferric ferrocyanide) have relatively high energy density, and are much cheaper and easier to manufacture than lithium-ion batteries, plus the are much safer to use than lithium-ion batteries, but they have an overwhelming advantage in recharge cycles, and can go 10,000 or more discharge/recharge cycles, where lithium-ion batteries can only withstand a few hundred. There is no doubt that lithium-ion batteries will be the preferred option where energy density and weight are the biggest concerns, but the fact is that the cost of lithium-ion batteries and their relative danger is going to mean that in very short order, most consumer applications and most heavy industrial applications will be using sodium-ion technology, because it is simply much more cost effective. Most people would be willing to have a thicker cell phone if it meant that the battery will last more than 1-2 years at most.

China accounted for 75% of the battery market share last year. What are u talking about "pull ahead"?

Having a guy from a lithium company talking how they need to protect lithium production and giving his ideas over sodium batteries is kind of sus in the first place, lol. This is on par with the Ericsson engineer who said that there are physical limits to wireless radio transmission at the beginning of the 2000s when the idea of 4G appeared and now we already have 5G on our phones and some already work on 6G.

Great documentary with practical insights. Lithium is still the winner 🥇 I believe.

Please, it's not salt.

Sodium ion battery is best for Stationary Grid Scale storage. BTW, Stationary energy storage market is much bigger than EV battery market.

Sodium can also be used for road transport power, once supercharging becomes ubiquitous and thus range becomes less important. If you have supercharging every 50km to 100km, sodium will perform fine.

China is going absolutely crazy these days ! They're developing new things over and over

Thank you nice reporting, would be nice to see regular updates on the battery development. Please also include information about the state of solid electrolyte batteries and lithium-sulfur batteries.

Yes, they will pull ahead.

Nobody mentioned safety issues and flammability of Li batteries. I am confident that safety and lower cost will eventually turn the tide in favor of Natrium.

Sea water desalination: fresh water, brine byproduct, but requires high energy to process Sodium battery: reprocess the brine to get the sodium, use the sodium battery to power for desalination

I think sodium's the future, because lithium batteries are a fire hazard, and sodium batteries aren't.

This seems like a very dis-genuine report. You constantly miss referred to them as salt batteries, when they are sodium ion. Very different. Molten salt batteries are their own invention and very different from these. And you didn’t even mention the Indian sodium ion battery producers.

Sodium-Ion Batteries are for Large Scale Applications like Power Backup for Microgrids.

Excellent report on the energy storage landscape.

Battery technology development is astonishing, but I believe a crucial aspect that must be factored into this field is also the entire environmental life-cycle impact.

sodium may be a better solution for stationary energy storage, where weight doesn't really matter.

Need a SALT box backup for my home.

Lovely...I have been waiting for this last 5 years

I would have liked to see LiFePO4 batteries in all those comparisons, not just lithium-ion vs sodium. Lithium-ion: high-power, sports cars and trucks. LiFePO4: regular power, small cars. Sodium-ion: home power storage.

You can also have capacitors in staged volume discharge with sequences of various in for various needs and moments in change and discharge thats a multi trillion dollar idea. Do it now.

*The Problem is Sodium Ion only have half the range 100KW per KG.*

If they are going to be lot cheaper than Lithium then certainly they will be popular for stationery energy storage systems, where the larger volume is not a big issue. Another plus will be more cycles of course.

This would be great to store wind, solar energy for our cities with such batteries. But doing so, salt going to be precious ingredient for our food ))

Public transit is the only long term viable solution to transport. EV+ICE=SOV=gridlock. If you cater to cars, you get more cars. Check the Katy Freeway in Texas or the 401 in Toronto for data.

There are already couple of companies that used sodium batteries for home. I’ve been following sodium ion batteries for months and what I am noticing is that many of them just went silent. Lower density is less of a problem if you plan to keep it in one place, like at home. Size and weight is also not an issue since home batteries can be big and don’t need to be moved. Moreover, sodium batteries are not flammable, so this is the PERFECT application. I just don’t know why all the companies that were trying to do this went silent

Sodium is abundant, it’s just a matter of scaling up production in your country of choice. This is good for the world

That’s really fascinating !! With more advanced technology coming forward, sodium-ion batteries can be produced with less heavier and much smaller. Batteries can be sold at cheaper prices.

Couple of year back here in India there was big noice about sodium battery production . now as usuaal China made it so far ..lol

LFP batteries do not require cobalt or nickel to work.

Sodium will reduce lithium demand / dependency atleast in small ev's or in smaller products.

Faradion of UK is a world leader in Sodium Ion technologies

Europe with its innovation heritage could compete with any nations if they have the policy will. They just need to work together.

Europe is busy with war funding 😂

No, larger and heavier batteries are NOT needed to drive longer! What is needed is more range and lighter inside lighter cars not stuffed with heavy accessories and equipment.

Na-Ion batteries aren’t new. They will just never have the same energy density. For fixed applications like home storage and small or remote grid storage, they may make sense but for large-scale grid storage flow batteries make even more sense, but for vehicles in North America and Australia probably not. It will be more advantageous to make much lighter Li-ion vehicles and making them more affordable. So while the Na-ion battery industry will grow don't expect it to replace the majority of Li-ion applications.

The electric vehicles same price... company is making more profits

Europe has a population the size of China, give our take whatever. But the difference is that the entire population of China is working to better China, where the entire population of Europe is still working to better their own individual countries. For this reason alone, Europe will never pull ahead of China.

What is the price difference per kilowatt hour?

If could charge my car at my apartment (I park on the street) and charge it again at my destination, I would be ok with a 20 or 30 mile range. I imagine others are in the same situation

Sodium ions (Na⁺) and lithium ions (Li⁺) are both monovalent cations derived from the alkali metals sodium (Na) and lithium (Li), respectively. Despite being in the same group of the periodic table and sharing similar chemical properties, they have some significant differences: Atomic and Ionic Size: Sodium Ion (Na⁺): The sodium ion is larger than the lithium ion. Sodium has an atomic number of 11, meaning it has more protons and electrons than lithium, resulting in a larger ionic radius. Lithium Ion (Li⁺): The lithium ion is smaller. Lithium has an atomic number of 3, so its ionic radius is significantly smaller due to having fewer electron shells. Charge Density: Sodium Ion (Na⁺): With its larger size, the charge density of a sodium ion is lower compared to lithium. This affects how it interacts with solvents and other ions. Lithium Ion (Li⁺): The lithium ion has a higher charge density due to its smaller size, leading to stronger interactions with solvents and higher polarization effects. Hydration Energy: Sodium Ion (Na⁺): The hydration energy of sodium ions is lower because of their larger size and lower charge density. Lithium Ion (Li⁺): Lithium ions have a higher hydration energy because the high charge density attracts water molecules more strongly. Chemical Reactivity: Sodium Ion (Na⁺): Sodium compounds tend to be more soluble in water and often participate in different types of reactions compared to lithium compounds. Lithium Ion (Li⁺): Lithium compounds often show different solubility patterns and can form unique compounds, such as organolithium reagents in organic chemistry. Electrochemical Applications: Sodium Ion (Na⁺): Sodium is used in various applications, including sodium-ion batteries, which are being explored as alternatives to lithium-ion batteries. Lithium Ion (Li⁺): Lithium-ion batteries are well-established and widely used in portable electronics, electric vehicles, and many other applications due to their high energy density and efficiency. Biological Role: Sodium Ion (Na⁺): Sodium ions play a critical role in physiological processes in living organisms, including nerve impulse transmission and muscle contraction. Lithium Ion (Li⁺): Lithium has a more limited biological role but is used medically, especially in the treatment of bipolar disorder. In summary, while sodium and lithium ions share some similarities as alkali metal cations, they differ in size, charge density, hydration energy, chemical reactivity, electrochemical applications, and biological roles. These differences make each ion unique in its behavior and applications.

thank you, well presented !

That occurs when the focus is on economy and development, rather than on inventing new gender categories, as Germany does.

Sodium batteries will be a game changer making a less expensive daily commuter.

Really good video keep up with great work and more on EV and battery tech😊❤

Chinese people and Swedish people in this are very cool neutral powers in the power dominated by economic interests that are often not in line with logic and progress.

where does Graphene stands among both (lithium and sodium) of these comparatively???

Battery size can be compensate with more charging stations. Or by development proximity charging along highways, auto charging of batteries while driving in such lanes.

China have more TMT engineers graduate than USA or EU combined. The research in China will lead the world.

Does this girl know that the term "salt" is not specific to table salt? Li also, as a metal, forms salt.

Wow that's awesome to hear! Well done China!.

Australia also had a couple of sodium battery companies making waves too.

Which one is better, peas or carrots?

*The Comment section is occupied by the 50 cent army.*

Will need both.

I feel Graphene batteries are the future. I know it’s difficult and expensive to produce, but it’s really worth the investment

During my two trips to China, I noticed that the people there work efficiently and get the job done quickly. We in the West are too preoccupied with rules, and becoming lazier.

This is huge news

Europe at this point can not catch up to China, and is likely to fall further behind. Normally industrialized nations have cheaper cost to energy, and higher automation which allows them to counter the cheaper cost to labour. China recognized this years ago, as they went heavy into coal, and dams to achieve lower energy costs to attract industry. China however was smart, and there are inherent advantages to a totalitarian state, and that was the shift to batteries, as they wanted to lower oil consumption because they held so little of it. With lower energy costs and cheap labour they attracted more and more industry and automation. Now Europe can't compete in any, except for maybe automation, and I would say they on par. Europe needs to work with Africa if they ever hope to compete with Russia, China, or the US. And China is already more aggressively pursuing ties with Africa in manufacturing, while Europe tries to just use Africa for their resources.

I think sodium ion batteries could be offered on eBikes. The BMS on eBikes is less sophisticated than EVs so the higher safety and higher tolerance of temperature could be an advantage. Also a reduced range may not be such a big deal for some ebike users. I typically ride 2 or 3 miles and rarely do more than 5 per trip.

i thought China already did?

BAN BAN BAN, cant compete, BAN.

many people would prefer to trade the cars lithium battery that lasts 1000 charge cycles and goes 350 miles per charge for a sodium ion that lasts 3000 charge cycles and gives 175 miles per charge and is much better for the planet. Not to mention it being superior in extreme cold,Something to consider. And they will only improve as the technology advances

Interesting video. But that cracle effect on the videos was incredibly irritating!