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Power China Transportation

First EV With Lithium-Free Sodium Battery Hits the Road In January (carnewschina.com) 67

Posted by BeauHD from the what-to-expect dept.
Deliveries of the world's first mass-produced electric vehicle equipped with a sodium-ion battery will begin in January 2024. According to CarNewsChina, they're being produced by JAC Motors, a Volkswagen-backed Chinese automaker, through its new Yiwei EV brand. From the report: The Yiwei EV hatchback will have a cylindrical sodium-ion pack from Beijing-based HiNa Battery and adopt JAC's UE (Unitized Encapsulation) module technology. UE is also known as a honeycomb design because of its appearance. It is another battery structure concept like CATL's CTP (cell-to-pack) or BYD's Blade battery. Yiwei is a new EV brand under Anhui Jianghuai Automobile (JAC), established in 2023. JAC's parent company, Anhui Jianghuai Automobile Group Holdings (JAG), is 50% state-owned, and 50% belongs to Volkswagen Group. The German automotive giant acquired its stake in 2020 in an unprecedented move to invest in China's state-owned car maker.

[...] In February 2023, JAC announced they were the first automaker to put the lithium-free sodium-ion battery on an electric vehicle. That EV was a Sehol E10X hatchback, and the Na+ battery had the following specifications: 25 kWh capacity, 120 Wh/kg energy density (single cell 140 Wh/kg), 3C to 4C charging (10% - 80% in 20 minutes), 252 km (157 miles) range for E10X, and HiNa NaCR32140 cell. Sehol was a brand under Volkswagen Anhui JV, which VW transferred to JAC in 2021. When the Yiwei brand was launched in May 2023, JAC announced that it would ditch the Sehol brand, and all vehicles are being rebadged to JAC or Yiwei. The pictures JAC released today tell us that the new sodium-ion-powered EV is the Sehol E10X. JAC hasn't yet confirmed the name of the new car under the Yiwei brand; it could be Yiwei E10X, but we have to wait for JAC's confirmation.

JAC recently pushed a lot into sodium-ion batteries R&D. During the Shanghai Auto Show in April 2023, the company showcased its first car under the Yiwei brand called Yiwei 3, which was equipped with a sodium-ion battery. However, the EV launched later in June, only with a classic LFP lithium battery, and promised the Na+ variant would come later. The Yiwei 3 is a compact hatchback that competes with Wuling Bingo, BYD Seagull, or ORA Funky Cat. It has two power train options, both front-wheel drive: 70 kW and 100 kW motor. The maximum cruising range is 505 km CLTC with a 51.5 kWh battery.
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First EV With Lithium-Free Sodium Battery Hits the Road In January More

First EV With Lithium-Free Sodium Battery Hits the Road In January

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  • Finally... (Score:5, Funny)

    by hackingbear ( 988354 ) on Friday December 29, 2023 @08:36PM (#64115957)

    We could remove dependency on Chinese lithium, by switching the Beijing-based HiNa Battery!

    • Re:Finally... (Score:5, Informative)

      by ShanghaiBill ( 739463 ) on Friday December 29, 2023 @09:10PM (#64116001)

      We could remove dependency on Chinese lithium

      We don't depend on China for lithium. Australia and Chile produce far more lithium than China.

      China is a net importer of lithium.

      List of countries by lithium production [wikipedia.org]

      by switching the Beijing-based HiNa Battery!

      Believe it or not, China does not have a lock on the world's sodium supply.

      Sodium batteries make a lot of sense for static applications, such as grid-scale energy storage and UPSes, but make less sense for mobile applications.

      • Re:Finally... (Score:4, Interesting)

        by ctilsie242 ( 4841247 ) on Friday December 29, 2023 @10:00PM (#64116101)

        I'm curious on the charging cycles of sodium batteries. If they can handle as many cycles as NiFe batteries can, those would be perfect for storage batteries where weight isn't as big a concern. For example, 25kwh might be good enough for a day or two of A/C use in a Texas summer.

        One of the biggest points with storage batteries is they need to have a charge cycle count. NiFe batteries have a practically unlimited cycle count, although they need watered constantly. If someone can make a battery chemistry that can handle that, and is relatively maintenance free, it would be a great boon, especially for small scale, static uses.

      • Re:Finally... (Score:5, Insightful)

        by Baron_Yam ( 643147 ) on Friday December 29, 2023 @10:05PM (#64116117)

        If they're less expensive, even with higher mass and lower capacity they're still an option for a city car. Not every car needs to be able to go over 500km on a charge.

      • Note that there are different types of sodium batteries. The kind most are familiar with (if they're aware of sodium batteries at all) is a molten salt type with an alumina separator. These need to be kept at rather high temperatures and are not suitable for mobile applications at all, not even vehicles, but have seen large scale adoption in mass/grid storage for decades.

        The type discussed in this article are a sodium ion chemistry, which is very similar to lithium-ion batteries but not quite as energy dens

      • You seriously lack sarcasm.

      • Lithium [Re:Finally...] (Score:5, Informative)

        by Geoffrey.landis ( 926948 ) on Friday December 29, 2023 @11:41PM (#64116267) Homepage

        We could remove dependency on Chinese lithium

        We don't depend on China for lithium. Australia and Chile produce far more lithium than China. China is a net importer of lithium. List of countries by lithium production [wikipedia.org]

        Yes and no.

        Lithium isn't mined in China, but China has the vast majority of the refineries that turn it from ore into usable form.

        China imports lithium ore from Australia and Chile, and exports refined lithium hydroxide or carbonate.
        https://www.nytimes.com/2023/0... [nytimes.com]

    • We could remove dependency on Chinese lithium

      Well this is a stupid comment. China has a very limited supply of lithium. However, what they do have is a large number of lithium refineries which are cheap for businesses to use because China doesn't care about polluting their local ecosystem or their workers' health.

    • also battery that dont catch fire.
    • You mean, just like the US has done to many other countries and then try to blackmail them when the US needs something done.

  • 25KWh is not a lot. That's what my 2015 leaf has and it's a major limitaiton.

    If it doesn't degrade over time like lithium ion batteries, that would be a bonus but TFS doesn't give any important metrics other than the capacity.

    • Supposedly its not a fire hazard when punctured.
    • les than the equivalent of a gallon of gas, and over 200kg too

      • less than the equivalent of a gallon of gas

        That's misleading. The gas tank to wheels efficiency of a gasoline ICE is typically about 20%, while a BEV is about 80%.

        So while the energy content is about the same as a gallon of gasoline, the range is many times as far.

        A good rule-of-thumb is that a kwh will move an EV about four miles or six kilometers.

        So a 25 kwh battery has a range of a about 100 miles or 160 kilometers.

        Disclaimer: My EV has an 80 kwh battery.

        • Re: (Score:3)

          by quenda ( 644621 )

          So a 25 kwh battery has a range of a about 100 miles or 160 kilometers.

          Where can i sign up? I live in a big city, and the only time I need more than that in a day is when heading to the country for more than a weekend, once or twice a year. It is dead easy to rent a car for that, if it means a cheap-ish car with low running cost.
          As it is, I don't drive anywhere near enough km/year to justify the high up-front cost of a Tesla.

      • Re:Low Range Ahoy! (Score:5, Informative)

        by Smidge204 ( 605297 ) on Friday December 29, 2023 @11:08PM (#64116223) Journal

        It's more than a gallon of gas equivalent.

        Sure, a gallon of gasoline has about 34 kWh of energy in it, which is certainly more than 24kWh, but consider when burned in a gasoline engine you dump roughly 75% of that overboard as heat and a gallon of gas only delivers you about 8.5 kWh of usable energy at the wheels.

        Flipped another way, assuming an EV gets at least 3 mi/kwh, that's over 100 MPG equivalent.
        =Smidge=

    • NaCR32140 cell

      Usual life is 8000 charges. If that's what you're wondering. All Sodium cars are in-town cars, you'll note who this car is competing with.

      Wuling Bingo, BYD Seagull, or ORA Funky Cat

      None of these are marketed as heading out of town cars. The vehicle is looking to enter market at about a bit over half the others, so the Bingo comes in at $10k (USD equivalent), so I would assume they're looking to market at somewhere around $5k or $6k (USD equivalent) MSRP. Your Leaf marketed originally at like $30k MSRP roughly? That's like $38k today for inflati

      • Those cars will be marketed and sold all over the ASEAN area.

      • The Leaf was more than that early on, but I paid $15K because it was one of the glut of ex-lease cars coming to the market and prior to the EV scramble. The price of a new leaf was an early adopter tax.

        I think people in the US would be well served with $10K EVs for commuting. The majority of people can't drop $40-90K on a currently popular EV.

    • This is a much smaller car than the Leaf, it’s stated range is double. 84 miles for the 2015 leaf and 151 for the E10X, 3200lbs for the Leaf, 2200 for the E10X. 150 is really 100 by the time you throw in A/C or heat and don’t drive slow and carefully, same as that 84 miles is really 55 for the same reasons. Not exactly built for American distances but as a city car it’s likely just fine.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Rei ( 128717 )

        These ranges are not EPA ranges. Chinese drive cycles are... let's say "generous".

        • These ranges are not EPA ranges. Chinese drive cycles are... let's say "generous".

          1000lbs less mass means 2/3 the curb weight, lower rolling resistance, a much smaller cross section and thus lowerwind resistance plus far less weight per person. I don’t think almost double range really sounds unreasonable.

      • >Not exactly built for American distances but as a city car it’s likely just fine.

        My 2015 leaf is ok for city driving. The range is down to about 60 miles and It won't get to the airport and back without a charge in between, but it handles the commute fine and the maintenance since I got it in 2017 has been for 1 set of tyres and a bottle of wiper fluid. So no complaints really. The offspring uses it now and I'm on my second Tesla for which the range is fine.

    • 25KWh is not a lot. That's what my 2015 leaf has and it's a major limitaiton.

      The car itself is not important but to be fair, you aren't comparing the range to other Chinese EVs. What is important is the battery technology which is far more impressive an appears to be on par with current lithium-ion batteries when it comes to weight to power ratio.

      What will be more interesting is if how economical the battery can be. Frankly, I would be a lot more interested in small electronics (especially smartphones) switching to sodium-ion batteries to cheaper electronics recycling.

  • Ions incoming (Score:3)

    by burtosis ( 1124179 ) on Friday December 29, 2023 @10:52PM (#64116195)
    It may not have the highest energy density, but the longevity and lower cost are looking to leave some people salty.

  • Here's a link with some better battery info: https://www.batterydesign.net/... [batterydesign.net]
    Wikipedia has a general battery comparison: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org]

    Overall, it's a surprisingly good battery technology which from all appearances could be a drop-in replacement for present-day lithium-ion batteries. I still think solid state lithium-ion batteries will be needed for long-range vehicles but this tech could drop the price of EVs.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Rei ( 128717 )

      Solid state batteries hit the roads in Chinese buses years ago, in low volumes. They also suck. Turns out that trying to move ions through a glass as well as you move them through a liquid (and trying to wet solid particles efficiently at the same time) kinda doesn't actually work well. And it's trying to solve a problem that there's dozens of other ways to solve.

      Sodium-ion is being pursued because of the possibility that it could become cheaper (note: it's not cheaper now). Unlike solid state, there's

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Rei ( 128717 )

        Just to reiterate: lithium makes up only 2-3% of the mass of a lithium-ion battery. And it's not rare.

      • Re: (Score:1)

        by dfghjk ( 711126 )

        "But I still have my doubts."

        You mean it doesn't benefit Elon Musk yet.

        "higher internal resistance, but that's already been resolved with "tabless" electrodes"

        LOL, you mean the late and underperforming 4680 cell. You mean "resolved" by Elon Musk. Meanwhile, most of the BEV industry doesn't use cylindrical cells.

        The air is fresher outside of Musk's ass, Rei.

      • Solid state batteries hit the roads in Chinese buses years ago

        No, they didn't. There have been hybrids that are semi solid-state but none are actually solid-state.

        Unlike solid state, there's actually a good amount of actual industry interest

        Automakers don't want to have higher energy density, faster charging, thermal runaway immunity, and removing the need for complex battery cooling systems? Seems kinda dumb if that's true.

        lithium prices shot up due to refining shortages recently,

        Considering the shear amount of batteries we need, it would be wise to cultivate multiple chemistries.

  • Sodium burns with a bright green flame

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by mike449 ( 238450 )

      Not true. Sodium ions give flames bright yellow color. It is copper ions which make it green.

  • I'm not up on the latest details regarding battery chemistry, but is it likely that sodium-based batteries will replace lithium batteries in the near future? Reason I ask is, we have a lithium battery manufacturer ramping up operations in town, and they claim they'll eventually hire thousands of people (which would be a great shot in the arm to this rust belt town) - but I wonder if sodium (or the next thing that comes along) will destroy the hopes of the local population that's counting on this plant's su

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