Low Cost and High-Performance Sodium-ion Batteries for Grid Energy Storage toward Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emission

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The United Nation's 2015 Paris Agreement provides a framework to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, and thereby limit the increase in global average temperature to 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. Canada is committed to reducing its carbon emissions by 2030 and achieving net zero by 2050. It leads to demand for alternative clean energy sources. Energy conversion techniques such as wind and solar-generated electricity have been thoroughly explored to maximize energy generation. However, they usually provide intermittent energy, which requires highly effective energy storage systems. The development of high-performance and low-cost energy storage devices is very urgent to integrate clean energy effectively into the grid. Batteries represent the most scalable energy-storage technology. Li-ion batteries (LIBs) are the most popular battery systems, however, the application of LIBs for grid energy storage is controversial due to the limited Li resources and high cost. Na-ion batteries have been proposed as ideal complementary alternatives to large-scale energy storage applications because of their high abundance and low cost. However, the current development of Na-ion batteries is still limited by materials development, interfacial phenomena and other key basic scientific and technical issues. To position Canada as a world leader in the field of grid energy storage, Western University, along with McGill University, Natural Resources Canada, and other partners, to establish the network to propose this Alliance Missions project. The goal of the project is to develop high energy density and low-cost Na-ion batteries for grid energy applications through innovative design, synthesis and fabrication from materials, interfaces and cell levels. Successful completion of the project will provide significant benefits to Canada's scientific, industrial and social development by transferring new knowledge, expertise and technologies. This initiative will accelerate the commercialization of sodium-ion batteries technology while simultaneously alleviating environmental pollution and developing the talents of many highly qualified personnel in Canada.