UK battery firm LiNa Energy has completed a trial of its prototype solid-state sodium battery technology with utility and energy storage company Ion Ventures.
The tests aimed to demonstrate battery and thermal management properties in a real-world environment using a 20 cell module with a nominal 50V, 1.5A rating.
Clean-tech specialist E4Tech identified that the technology had a battery price of $25-50/kWh, a 4,500 cycle life, and a system operating range of between 160-300°C.
A spokesman for the companies told BEST: “All batteries need to reject the same amount of heat regardless of operating temperature. Lithium-ion batteries operate around 40-45°C and performance falls off quickly above (or below) this range.
“LiNa can use simple air convection cooling and house in shipping containers for massive capex advantage. Using simple insulation and elegant innovative pack and system design, the energy to keep LiNa’s packs at temperature when not in use is small and of the same order of the phantom drain experienced by lithium-ion batteries in EV applications.
“A typical LiNa pack/system will be able to sit for a few days at temperature without requiring any parasitic heating at all.”
LiNa says the technology could be an alternative to lithium-ion and lead batteries used in stationary, behind-the-meter applications.
Gene Lewis, CEO of LiNa Energy, said: “This first real-world environment test is a crucial step towards the mass deployment of solid-state sodium batteries for scale energy storage purposes and we very much look forward to further, more commercially focused demonstration trials soon.”
