在宁德时代技术图谱中，钠电并非是为了制衡锂电而存在。相反，宁德时代认为，钠电不仅是实现资源自由的关键一环，更因其独特价值，将是对整个能源进行重构的一个起点。

　　“要做到资源或者能源的自由，我们的目标是大量推广钠电。”宁德时代首席技术官高焕日前在接受电池中国等平台访谈时指出。

01

钠电有其独特价值

　　尽管，当前钠电在能量密度上还不如磷酸铁锂电池，但其低温性能优异、安全性能高、高倍率放电温升小、循环寿命长等优势，仍意味着其在众多场景，相较于现有锂电池有巨大潜力。

　　高焕指出，在钠电领域，产业界应专注需求导向型的创新，宁德时代对于钠电的研发和投入，是希望技术突破和应用回归到真实的场景需求。

　　在高焕看来，钠电相较于锂电，其最大的优势是低温性能非常好。

　　传统锂电池在零下20℃以下，性能就会出现严重衰减，冬季续航腰斩、充电速度缓慢、运营效率难保障，掣肘着电动化的进一步发展。

　　日前，宁德时代发布的天行II轻商低温版解决方案，在新能源轻型商用车领域率先导入钠离子电池。据宁德时代介绍，该钠离子电池在零下20℃，依然保有92%以上的可用电量;在零下30℃，即使电芯完全冻透，照样可以即插即充。“即便到零下40℃，钠电仍然能正常工作，展现出了非常明显的(低温)优势。”

　　在动力方面，即使在10%SOC极端亏电状态下，零下30度极寒条件下，钠电依然支持满载攀越10°坡道。

　　作为对比，传统锂电池在零下温度环境中，需要给电池自加热才能启动，这无形中也会消耗电量，从而影响车辆续航。

　　在宁德时代看来，东北、西北等一些冻土高寒地区的运营市场，钠电本身具备的一些性能优势，将是锂电无可比拟的，这一市场未来钠电将大有可为。

　　其次是钠电的安全性能。据宁德时代介绍，其研发量产的钠电池，即使经历锯断、电钻、多向挤压等“地狱级”滥用测试，都不会起火，更不会爆炸。

　　再者，还有钠电的高倍率放电低温升优势。据高焕介绍，钠电在高倍率放电，比如5C放电的时候，电池发热温升不会超过5℃。

　　作为对比，锂电池在大倍率放电时，温升较快，需要在热管理方面做非常复杂的设计，以确保锂电池在高倍率放电时的可靠性和安全性。

　　最后，钠电的循环寿命，也要比磷酸铁锂、铅酸电池高很多。宁德时代董事长曾毓群曾提出，新能源产业正站在新的十字路口，从高速度到高质量，从局部突破到全域增量，将迎来一个更广阔、更系统的增长时代。“商用车、乘用车、电动船舶和储能是发展零碳社会的重要路径，钠电池独特的低温性能、安全性能和循环优势，将在全域增量的零碳社会发展上，拥有非常大的一片天空。”高焕补充道。

02

能量密度三年内赶上现有磷酸铁锂电池

　　现阶段，钠电池的能量密度仍然是短板之一，也是其无法与锂电相抗衡的核心痛点。

　　然而，在高焕看来，这并非不可逾越。“回想锂电池过去15年的发展历程，2012年宁德时代给宝马配套的电动车型，搭载的是磷酸铁锂电池，续航只有200公里左右。而今天我们推出的纯电乘用车续航，可以轻轻松松突破1000公里。”高焕进一步解释道，这意味着什么，过去十多年来，磷酸铁锂自身电芯到PACK效率都在不断提升，“回过头来，我们看现在的钠电池，也肯定会沿着这样一个路线发展，不过我们在锂电池方面，积累了非常多的技术、工艺，会让钠电的发展斜率曲线更快(到来)。”

　　尽管，现阶段钠电能量密度，仍然比磷酸铁锂低，但高焕认为未来三年，钠电的能量密度基本上可以做到，与现在磷酸铁锂电池差不多。

　　值得一提的是，现阶段磷酸铁锂电池能量密度，已经可以广泛满足新能源乘用车、商用车、电动船舶、储能等绝大多数场景需求。如若真如高焕所预测，未来钠电能量密度可以接近现有磷酸铁锂电池，再加上其循环、安全、低温等优势，预计会有更大用武之地。

　　事实上，除了已经确认，今年将在轻型商用车领域，量产装车钠电池，据高焕介绍，宁德时代已经规划将钠电应用到乘用车领域。据高焕透露，宁德时代与京东、埃安联合推出的埃安UT super，将提供钠电版本，含充电和换电车型，今年第二季度将量产装车。

　　根据宁德时代规划，随着钠电产能逐渐释放，未来除了新能源乘用车、商用车，还将在工程机械等领域落地。

03

钠电的成本优势，远不只资源本身

　　在地壳资源储量中，钠的丰度是锂的四百余倍。正是基于这一事实，业界认为钠不仅可以实现资源自由，不被卡脖子，还将比锂更便宜。

　　不过，现阶段钠电的整体成本要比锂更贵。

　　“锂电池发展了这么多年，整个供应链非常完整、齐全，效率也非常高。钠电今年在成本上还做不到比锂低。”高焕认为，但是从未来两到三年来看，宁德时代的目标，就是要将钠电做到比现在的锂离子电池更具经济性。

　　据悉，宁德时代在钠电正极材料、工艺、装备等领域，与战略合作伙伴进行了广泛的前期布局。可以预见，在宁德时代等头部企业带动下，尤其是其钠电开始产业化应用，整个行业会快速跟进。

　　除了资源和产业链健全带来的降本，在高焕看来，钠电其独特的产品性能优势，也会推动钠电更具经济性。

　　一方面，钠电有着优异的低温性能，在做系统集成设计时，可以进行精简设计，不像锂电需要复杂的产品设计，这种“极简设计”可以带来经济性和性能上更好的体验。

　　其次，钠电大倍率放电，升温低(钠电5C放电，温升不超过5℃)，不需要额外降温设计，热管理难度降低，热管理设计也可以进一步优化。这些优点，未来都会推动钠电的电池包成本，相较锂电池低很多。

　　因此，从长远来看，随着技术成熟、产业链完善、应用场景持续适配，钠电规模放量，其未来的市场空间，或远高于目前业界想象。

In the Ningde Times technology map, sodium batteries do not exist to balance lithium batteries. On the contrary, CATL believes that sodium electricity is not only a key link in achieving resource freedom, but also a starting point for restructuring the entire energy system due to its unique value.

To achieve freedom of resources or energy, our goal is to extensively promote sodium batteries, "said Gao Huan, Chief Technology Officer of CATL, in a recent interview with platforms such as Battery China.

01

Sodium electricity has its unique value

Although sodium batteries currently have lower energy density than lithium iron phosphate batteries, their excellent low-temperature performance, high safety performance, low temperature rise during high rate discharge, and long cycle life still mean that they have great potential in many scenarios compared to existing lithium batteries.

Gao Huan pointed out that in the field of sodium electricity, the industry should focus on demand-oriented innovation. CATL's research and investment in sodium electricity is aimed at achieving technological breakthroughs and applications that return to real scenario needs.

In Gao Huan's view, the biggest advantage of sodium batteries over lithium batteries is their excellent low-temperature performance.

Traditional lithium batteries experience severe performance degradation below minus 20 ℃, resulting in reduced winter range, slow charging speed, and difficulty in ensuring operational efficiency, which hinders the further development of electrification.

Recently, CATL released the Tianxing II light commercial low-temperature version solution, which is the first to introduce sodium ion batteries in the field of new energy light commercial vehicles. According to CATL, the sodium ion battery still maintains over 92% of its available power at minus 20 ℃; At minus 30 ℃, even if the battery cells are completely frozen, they can still be plug and charge immediately. Even at minus 40 ℃, sodium electricity can still work normally, demonstrating a very obvious (low-temperature) advantage

In terms of power, even under extreme conditions of 10% SOC and minus 30 degrees Celsius, the sodium battery still supports climbing a 10 ° slope at full load.

As a comparison, traditional lithium batteries require self heating to start in sub zero temperature environments, which invisibly consumes power and affects vehicle range.

In the view of Ningde Times, the operational markets in some permafrost and cold regions such as Northeast and Northwest China have some performance advantages that sodium batteries possess, which are unparalleled by lithium batteries. This market will have great potential for sodium batteries in the future.

Next is the safety performance of sodium batteries. According to CATL, the sodium batteries developed and mass-produced by CATL will not catch fire or explode even after undergoing "hellish" abuse tests such as sawing, drilling, and multi-directional squeezing.

Furthermore, there is also the advantage of high rate discharge and low temperature rise of sodium electricity. According to Gao Huan, when sodium batteries are discharged at high rates, such as 5C discharge, the heating temperature rise of the battery will not exceed 5 ℃.

As a comparison, lithium batteries have a faster temperature rise during high rate discharge, requiring very complex design in thermal management to ensure the reliability and safety of lithium batteries during high rate discharge.

Finally, the cycle life of sodium batteries is much higher than that of lithium iron phosphate and lead-acid batteries. Ningde Times Chairman Zeng Yuqun once proposed that the new energy industry is standing at a new crossroads, from high speed to high quality, from local breakthroughs to global increments, and will usher in a broader and more systematic era of growth. Commercial vehicles, passenger cars, electric ships, and energy storage are important paths for the development of a zero carbon society. The unique low-temperature performance, safety performance, and cycling advantages of sodium batteries will have a very large sky in the development of a zero carbon society with global incremental growth, "Gao Huan added.

02

Energy density will catch up with existing lithium iron phosphate batteries within three years

At present, the energy density of sodium batteries is still one of the shortcomings and the core pain point that makes it unable to compete with lithium batteries.

However, in Gao Huan's view, this is not insurmountable. Looking back at the development history of lithium batteries over the past 15 years, in 2012, CATL provided BMW with electric vehicles equipped with lithium iron phosphate batteries with a range of only about 200 kilometers. Today, we have launched pure electric passenger cars with a range that can easily exceed 1000 kilometers, "Gao Huan further explained." What this means is that over the past decade, the efficiency of lithium iron phosphate batteries from their own cells to PACK has been continuously improving. "Looking back, we can see that sodium batteries will definitely develop along this path, but we have accumulated a lot of technology and processes in lithium batteries, which will make the slope curve of sodium battery development faster (coming)

Although the energy density of sodium batteries is still lower than that of lithium iron phosphate batteries at present, Gao Huan believes that in the next three years, the energy density of sodium batteries can be basically achieved, similar to that of current lithium iron phosphate batteries.

It is worth mentioning that at present, the energy density of lithium iron phosphate batteries can widely meet the needs of most scenarios such as new energy passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles, electric ships, and energy storage. If, as predicted by Gao Huan, the energy density of sodium batteries in the future can approach that of existing lithium iron phosphate batteries, coupled with their advantages in cycling, safety, and low temperature, it is expected to have even greater applications.

In fact, in addition to being confirmed, sodium batteries will be mass-produced and installed in the field of light commercial vehicles this year. According to Gao Huan, CATL has planned to apply sodium batteries to the passenger car industry. According to Gao Huan, the Aeon UT super jointly launched by CATL, JD.com, and Aeon will provide a sodium electric version, including charging and swapping models, and will be mass-produced and installed in the second quarter of this year.

According to Ningde Times' plan, with the gradual release of sodium electricity production capacity, in addition to new energy passenger vehicles and commercial vehicles, it will also be implemented in the fields of construction machinery in the future.

03

The cost advantage of sodium electricity goes far beyond the resources themselves

In the reserves of crustal resources, the abundance of sodium is more than 400 times that of lithium. It is based on this fact that the industry believes that sodium can not only achieve resource freedom and not be choked, but also be cheaper than lithium.

However, at present, the overall cost of sodium electricity is more expensive than lithium.

Lithium batteries have been developed for so many years, and the entire supply chain is very complete and efficient. Sodium batteries cannot achieve lower costs than lithium batteries this year, "Gao Huan believes. However, in the next two to three years, CATL's goal is to make sodium batteries more economical than current lithium-ion batteries.

It is reported that CATL has conducted extensive preliminary layout with strategic partners in the fields of sodium positive electrode materials, processes, equipment, etc. It can be foreseen that under the leadership of leading enterprises such as CATL, especially with the industrial application of sodium batteries, the entire industry will quickly follow suit.

In addition to the cost reduction brought about by the sound resources and industrial chain, in Gao Huan's view, the unique product performance advantages of sodium batteries will also promote their economic viability.

On the one hand, sodium batteries have excellent low-temperature performance and can be simplified in system integration design, unlike lithium batteries that require complex product design. This "minimalist design" can bring better economic and performance experiences.

Secondly, sodium high rate discharge with low temperature rise (sodium discharge at 5C, temperature rise not exceeding 5 ℃) does not require additional cooling design, reducing the difficulty of thermal management and further optimizing the thermal management design. These advantages will drive the cost of sodium batteries in the future, which are much lower than lithium batteries.

Therefore, in the long run, with the maturity of technology, the improvement of the industrial chain, and the continuous adaptation of application scenarios, the scale of sodium electricity is increasing, and its future market space may be far higher than the current industry imagination.