- Yadea launches with a number of two-wheelers fueled by sodium-ion
- Sodium will play a key role in wider battery exchange systems in China
- The country already pushes mass production of technology
The presence of sodium in batteries is not new, because the first documented use of computer science dates back to the 1960s, when the Ford Motor Company planned to use them for very early electric vehicles.
But last year, the Chinese automaker JAC (a joint venture with Volkswagen in China) produced the first sodium-ion battery production in the world in the Hua Xianzi (it is roughly translated by “ Flower Fairy ”), which uses a small 25 kWh-ion battery that can travel up to 155 miles.
Although it is not exactly a worldwide success on sales, technology has found a place among the booming microcar economy of China and, perhaps even more important, its creeping demand for diminutive two-wheeled scooters.
In a place like Shenzhen, a megapacity with a population of 17.8 million inhabitants, the humble scooter is one of the most popular forms of transport, with more than 55 million people sold in 2023 only, and Yadea is among the most popular brands.
The world leader in electric two-wheelers has now published three electric scooters supplied by sodium-ion to date, according to the BBC, with plans in the pipeline to offer much more.
These batteries are built in a similar way to their lithium-ion counterparts, but transfer sodium ions between the electrodes during load and discharge, rather than other rare earth materials.
Currently, lead batteries continue to dominate the electric scooter landscape because technology is cheap and produced on a large scale, but the demand for sodium-ion units is gradually increasing.
By 2030, 15% of China’s electric scooters will be fed by them, against 0.04% in 2023, according to an analysis of the Institute for the Research Points based in Shenzhen, which assesses the China battery industry.
Analysis: sodium-ion goes far beyond transport
The two-wheeled electric manufacturer Yadea also builds one of the most robust scooter load networks in China, with installation plans of more than 1,000 fast charge pillars that have been specially designed for Sodium-ion batteries this year in Hangzhou, which would allow commuters to find a station every 2 km (1.2 mile).
It also advances with a massive battery exchange program in Shenzen, with a target of 20,000 exchange stations this year, which allow runners to replace a used battery for a unit fully loaded in about 30 seconds. This number will reach 50,000 by 2027.
Currently, sodium-ion batteries are still very ascending, because the price and demand for lithium-ion units have dropped from its weightlifting from all time after post-paymic.
A relatively low energy density (some pitch sodium-ion batteries as 30% less dense of energy than lithium-ion counterparts) has also pushed the main automotive players, all of which are constantly looking for the lightest and densest options on the market.
But the vision of China for savory batteries goes far beyond transport, the BBC indicating that it is already on the right track for sodium -based energy storage solutions, which help balance the network and store excess energy from renewable sources when they are not used – all without competing the automotive industry and its voracious appetite.
