Sodium Batteries: Throwing Salt into the Utility Woe Wounds: Battery Technology: Eco20/20

Sodium Batteries: Throwing Salt into the Utility Woe Wounds

We all realize, or at least we should realize, what a struggle it is to generate enough energy for all of our ever growing needs. Right now in the typical home there are electric lights, televisions, radios, and computers turned on.

Some of these items are not being used: some of them are in rooms that are not even occupied. We waste energy and complain about the cost. We plug in yet another time-saving appliance and complain about the cost. We hear about a new technology and complain not only about the cost but also about what we do not know and do not understand.

There are alternatives to the growing energy crisis-alternate energy sources and alternate energy storage methods-but they must be given a chance before they can ever succeed. One of these alternatives is the sodium-sulfur (NaS) battery which could end some energy storage concerns without creating others.

The NaS battery could end the need for new transmission lines which cost millions of dollars every year for installation and upkeep. This battery could also be beneficial in a number of other applications including making unreliable wind power a more viable as an energy source and providing a safe, reliable back up energy source for power failures like the devastating winter outages that struck New York City in the recent past.

"Energy demands are expected to increase by 30-50% by 2030" (Davidson). If we do not have methods to harness other power sources or to back up this enormous need, our major cities will see overloaded power grids and imminent failures across the country. The NaS battery could be the answer to some of these growing concerns. Not only can it use and store wind energy, but it also does so easily and efficiently.

No neighborhood welcomes a new electrical substation, nor do any electrical customers want to pay more for their energy to account for new wires and transmission, but no one wants to give up their high definition televisions and microwave ovens either. The NaS battery could allow for both realities: no more substations or new line installation and no rationing or limiting the amount of energy being used each day.

The drawback to the NaS battery for most utility companies and the communities that they serve is the price. Reportedly, the cost is about 10% per kilowatt hour more than a coal-fired plant. However, once the battery becomes more established and is produced in larger numbers, that price could go down to a more competitive level.

Reference: Paul Davidson. New Battery Packs Powerful Punch. USA Today. Retrieved http://usatoday.com