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

联合国2015年达成的《巴黎协定》为减少温室气体排放提供了框架，从而将全球平均气温的上升幅度限制在比工业化前水平高2摄氏度以内。加拿大承诺到2030年减少碳排放，到2050年实现净零排放。这将导致对可替代清洁能源的需求。能源转换技术，如风能和太阳能发电已经深入探索，以最大限度地提高能源生产。然而，它们通常提供间歇性的能量，这需要高效的储能系统。开发高性能、低成本的储能设备，将清洁能源有效地接入电网，刻不容缓。电池代表了最具可扩展性的储能技术。锂离子电池（LIBs）是目前最受欢迎的电池系统，但由于锂资源有限和成本高，LIBs在电网储能中的应用存在争议。钠离子电池因其高丰度和低成本而被认为是大规模储能应用的理想补充替代品。然而，目前钠离子电池的发展仍然受到材料发展、界面现象等关键基础科学技术问题的限制。为了使加拿大在电网储能领域处于世界领先地位，西部大学与麦吉尔大学、加拿大自然资源部和其他合作伙伴一起建立了网络，提出了这个联盟任务项目。该项目的目标是通过从材料、界面和电池层面的创新设计、合成和制造，为电网能源应用开发高能量密度和低成本的钠离子电池。该项目的成功完成将通过转让新的知识、专门知识和技术，为加拿大的科学、工业和社会发展带来重大利益。这一举措将加速钠离子电池技术的商业化，同时减轻环境污染，并在加拿大培养许多高素质人才。

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.