A new sodium battery has achieved impressive charging times of just four minutes, but don’t anticipate its use in electric vehicles just yet.

      The advancement could enhance rapid charging and battery longevity, although the findings have not shown these results in a production-sized battery pack.

      A new sodium-metal battery has achieved a charging rate that renders current electric vehicles quite sluggish. In lab tests, the cell functioned at a rate of 15C, meaning it could fully charge or discharge in approximately four minutes.

      However, this does not imply that researchers connected an electric vehicle and watched it recharge while the driver finished their coffee. This outcome was reached with a small experimental cell utilizing a novel quasi-solid electrolyte, while the larger pouch-cell prototype exhibited significantly less impressive performance.

      How it achieved the four-minute charge

      The battery employs a gel electrolyte known as Sn-FB QSE, which facilitates more uniform movement of sodium ions and maintains the stability of the metal surface during charging.

      Andy Zahn / Digital Trends

      This stability addresses one of the main challenges encountered with sodium-metal batteries. Sodium has the potential to create sharp dendritic deposits, which can extend through the cell and lead to short circuits. The more robust gel structure minimizes the weak points where these deposits typically initiate.

      At a 15C rate, the full cell still provided 80.1 mAh per gram. While this is an impressive laboratory achievement, a four-minute charging rate does not equate to charging an EV battery from empty under real-world conditions involving heat, power, and safety considerations.

      Where the longevity assertion shifts

      The battery's best durability outcome was achieved at a reduced 3C rate, corresponding to around 20 minutes. Under these circumstances, the full cell maintained 90% of its capacity after 2,000 cycles.

      Additionally, a separate sodium-to-sodium test lasted over 6,000 hours without failing. This simpler configuration checks the evenness of sodium deposits, but it does not represent a complete battery powering a device.

      These findings suggest that the electrolyte enhances stability across multiple experiments. However, they do not demonstrate a single cell that integrates four-minute charging, retention over 2,000 cycles, and endurance for 6,000 hours in one test.

      BYD

      Why an electric vehicle remains distant

      The researchers also created a small pouch-cell prototype, which is more in line with the battery format used in actual products. It retained 84% of its capacity after 19 cycles at a slow 0.1C rate. Another variant maintained 60% after 100 cycles at 0.2C under minimal pressure.

      Neither pouch cell achieved the headline charging speed or lifespan. The next significant milestone is a larger pouch cell capable of supporting rapid charging without quick degradation over hundreds of cycles without puncture or pressure.

      Paulo Vargas is an English major who became a reporter and later a technical writer, with a career that has consistently circled back to...

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