CATL will Start Manufacturing Sodium-Ion Batteries for Electric Vehicles Next Year

Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Ltd. (CATL), which is the main battery supplier for car makers Tesla, Volkswagen, and others, said it will launch a sodium-ion battery line next year. The chemical composition of sodium-ion batteries is similar to that of standard lithium-ion batteries, with positive and negative ions moving between the cathode and anode materials inside the battery. However, one of the challenges faced by CATL is that sodium ions have a larger volume and higher structural stability requirements. CATL's new solution is to develop a solid carbon anode material with a porous structure. The stronger, but more porous anode material provides high storage and rapid movement of sodium ions, as well as outstanding cyclic performance. CATL also claims to have adopted a cathode material with a higher specific capacity and has upgraded the bulk structure by rearranging electrons, which solves the problem of rapid capacity loss with repeated cycling in sodium-ion batteries.