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Why We Are Here => Hardware & Technology => Topic started by: rcjordan on October 08, 2026, 08:24:37 PM

Title: 9.7 kWh sodium-ion home battery promises ultra-long 20,000-cycle life
Post by: rcjordan on October 08, 2026, 08:24:37 PM

https://interestingengineering.com/energy/sodium-home-battery-promises-20000-cycles
Title: Re: 9.7 kWh sodium-ion home battery promises ultra-long 20,000-cycle life
Post by: ergophobe on October 09, 2026, 07:40:01 PM
Not 20,000 cycles, but 20,000 cycles at 100% depth of discharge. That's a big deal. Lithium batteries offer 10,000 cycles at 80% DOD. If you push them to 100% DOD they are typically guaranteed for half or so.

What that means is that in general, you only use 80% of a battery. If you charge it like Tesla recommends, you only use 60% of the capacity (i.e. you try to keep it between 20% and 80%).

But let's say you use 80%. That means that if it's 25% more expensive, that's still a breakeven on a sodium battery right away, not even counting the long-term savings of get 2X as many cycles.

For perspective: 20,000 cycles, assuming you charge every day and discharge every night (or vice-versa if grid-tied) means that it has an expected lifespan of 55 years.