Will "sea water batteries" be expected to replace lithium batteries?

Hydroelectric power is believed to be heard, but has it ever occurred to you that seawater can generate electricity? Researchers at the National Institute of Science and Technology(UNIST) in Ulsan, South Korea, have focused on the development of a seawater battery that is not only greener and cheaper than lithium batteries, but also significantly reduces the risk of fire. The research team is currently actively improving and is expecting to launch the market later.

It is understood that the members of this seawater battery research project also include Korea Electric Power Corporation(KEPCO) and Korea East and West Power Company(EWP), both of which will invest another 3 billion won and 2 billion won in 2018 and 2019 respectively, so that UNIST has sufficient funds to improve batteries for commercial use. Since the sodium used by seawater batteries to generate electricity is the sixth most abundant element in the earth's reserves, not only is the cost lower than that of lithium batteries, but at the same time, keeping seawater in a hot fluid state can also reduce the risk of fire. It can be said that there are many benefits.

The operating principle of a sea water battery is similar to that of a lithium battery. Sodium ions are stored in the cathode when charged. When discharged, sodium reacts with water and oxygen to form sodium hydroxide, and electricity is released during the process. As for the reason why seawater batteries are still not commercially available, the main problem is that the power output is low. Therefore, the research team is currently continuously improving the geometry design of batteries and producing batteries of various sizes and shapes. It is hoped that the charging rate will be increased to 20 Wh. This is expected to replace lithium batteries as a new generation of energy storage media.

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