The Chinese Turn to Sodium: The Battery That Charges in Four Minutes and Challenges Lithium Dominance

China continues to invest in the development of alternative energy technologies, and one of the most interesting innovations involves sodium-ion batteries. Researcher Lu Yaxiang, a professor at the Institute of Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, has developed a battery capable of achieving a full charge in approximately four minutes, a result that could help reduce the country's strong dependence on lithium.

For this work, last April, the scientist received the Youth May Fourth Medal, the most important Chinese recognition dedicated to talented youth under 35 years old. The device utilizes a quasi-solid gel electrolyte that maintains its characteristics even after repeated flexing. Additionally, the battery retains about 90% of its initial capacity after 2,000 charge cycles.

Interest in this technology is primarily linked to the availability of raw materials. Currently, China imports about 75% of the lithium needed to produce batteries, while sodium is around 500 times more abundant in nature, can be extracted from seawater, and has significantly lower costs. For this reason, the government and industry are accelerating investments in a national supply chain that is less dependent on foreign supplies.

Gotion has also presented significant innovations related to sodium batteries. Meanwhile, Gotion has announced major progress by showcasing sodium batteries with an energy density of 261 Wh/kg and a claimed lifespan of 20,000 charge cycles, features that are beginning to bring this technology closer to the performance of lithium-iron-phosphate batteries in many application areas.

The use of sodium batteries is no longer limited to laboratories. In China, a large energy storage facility is already operational, covering an area equivalent to about 15 soccer fields, capable of providing energy to approximately 12,000 households. CATL has also signed a deal to supply 60 GWh of sodium batteries intended for storage systems in the city of Ningde, in Fujian province.

Despite commercial sodium-ion cells still offering lower energy density compared to the best lithium-ion batteries, recent advancements are rapidly closing this gap. It has been reported that the growing demand for lithium, fueled also by the development of artificial intelligence, makes this alternative increasingly economically competitive.