DIGIVESTASI - Recently, the Indonesian public has been debating the advantages and disadvantages of electric vehicle batteries made from nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) versus lithium ferrophosphate (LFP). 

But abroad, the latest innovations in replacement batteries continue to grow rapidly. In fact, Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer Anhui Jianghuai Automobile (JAC) Motors is set to launch the world's first electric car model using a salt or sodium-ion hybrid battery. This year, the company, which is also owned by Volkswagen AG, is even ready to start mass production. 

Thus, JAC is also the first car manufacturer in the world to launch mass production of electric vehicles powered by sodium-ion batteries. According to its official website, the electric vehicle is named JAC Yiwei, this is also a new product launched in 2023. 

The car was also introduced at the Shanghai Auto Show, an automotive exhibition held in Panda Land in February 2023, with the first variant using LFP batteries. But as it develops, by cooperating with a technology company called HiNa Battery, they are trying to innovate and will use sodium-ion-based EV batteries.

Specifications
The car is claimed to be able to travel 252 km with a 25 kWh capacity battery using Hina NaCR 32140 battery cells. 

The energy density is reported at 120 Wh/kg and allows recharging from 3C to 4C. JAC assembles the battery in the company's Unitized Encapsulation (UE) modular honeycomb structure, similar to the cell-by-cell layout of CATL and BYD's Blade batteries - an arrangement that can provide better stability and performance. 

Meanwhile, sodium ions themselves are composed of sodium salts or compounds. The researchers revealed that sodium-ion batteries are less affected by cold temperatures - a persistent problem with lithium batteries. In addition, sodium tends to be easier to find if you want to utilize it as a raw material for electric batteries. In addition, batteries made from the salt compound are more economical than lithium batteries, which also require other metallic minerals such as cobalt and nickel. 
However, sodium will have a much lower density of cells (battery cells) - which are used to store energy - than lithium.  

While the low energy density of sodium-ion batteries means they are not suitable for larger electric vehicles, they can be used to replace lithium in low-end or low-range vehicles. 
They are also capable of storing energy from the power grid, so size is not an issue. BloombergNEF research reports that sodium should reduce lithium demand by about 272,000 tons by 2035, or more than a million tons if lithium supply is insufficient to meet demand. 

"Changes in the metal composition of batteries have changed the supply and demand outlook and lowered the prices of metal products. Cobalt and nickel - which appeared to have long-term shortages a few years ago - have had to revise their demand forecasts due to the emergence of cells that don't use them. "And the potential for significant price changes is particularly pronounced in the case of lithium," the study explained at the end of last year.

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