Na ion materials as essential components to manufacture robust battery cells for non-automotive applications
The EU is transitioning to The EU is transitioning to a secure, sustainable and competitive energy system as laid out in the EC’s Energy Union strategy. The growing penetration of renewable energy sources in the EU energy market, go hand in hand with a high-competitiveness of the most consolidated technologies: Wind Energy and Solar Photovoltaics. The non-dispatchable renewable generation requires a higher flexibility in the energy system, where the weight of much more decentralised installations grow day-to-day. In fact, the flourishing of a wide portfolio of renewable energy installations is allowing the deployment of large to small scale industrial electricity grids, and in an increased share of electricity produced in private households. The NAIMA project will demonstrate that the new generation of high-competitive and safety Na-Ion cells developed and tested during the project, is one of the most robust and cost-effective alternatives to unseat the current and future Li-based technologies, nowadays controlled by Asian industry. The EU cannot jeopardize the future of its stronger industry to a technology already in the hands of non-European countries. Just the availability of the raw materials of Li-ion cells is almost a “miracle”. Under this scenario, the most robust non-Lithium alternative is the technology based on Sodium-ion (Na-ion). This disruptive technology is already supported by a solid European Battery value chain (industry partners of the consortium) through their solid commitment of substantial investments in the manufacturing of all components of a battery, preserving the ownership and industry strength around European countries. Within the framework of the project, 3 SIB prototypes will be tested in 3 multi-scale Business Scenarios to provide solid evidences about the competitiveness of the technology in 3 real ESS environments (renewable generation, industry and private household) through the application of an assessment and monitoring protocol.