Safety – No fire or explosion risk 
There is no possibility of thermal runaway because of the SoNick battery characteristics and its chemistry is basically a non-flammable common salt. Lithium ion batteries can catch fire if they get too hot. They must be kept air conditioned at all times (which adds to running costs). You can’t put water on a lithium ion fire or the battery will explode. Fire brigade currently have no means to extinguish a lithium ion battery fire.
No gas emissions
Lead acid batteries, in particular give off hydrogen and must be kept in a fireproof enclosure that will prevent any sparks from igniting the batteries. This also applies to lithium ion to a lesser extent. Redflow has the risk of a chemical spill (toxic bromine) although this is low.
No cooling required
The SoNick battery doesn’t require any cooling so doesn’t have any ongoing operational costs or need extra space as do most lead acid and lithium ion batteries. Lithium ion batteries must be kept cool, in an air conditioned enclosure to prevent thermal runaway (explosion). Lithium ion and lead acid batteries that operate in an ambient temperature will degrade, i.e. a lead acid battery operating above 40 degrees will half its life expectancy.
Wide Temperature operating environments (-20°C to +60°C)
SoNick battery has a wide operating range of -20° to +60°C without degradation which makes it a much better alternative to other energy storage batteries for Australia’s extreme weather conditions, particularly the Australian outback where temperatures can vary widely.
Most other batteries operate between 5° to +40°C and will stop working and start to degrade at ambient temperatures above 35-40°C. Most lithium ion battery warranties have a clause invalidating the warranty if ambient operating temperature exceeds 40°C or average temperature goes above a certain temperature, usually less than 30°C
Recycling
The SoNick battery is 100% recyclable with a recycle program already in place in Europe, which can easily be duplicated in Australia at the appropriate time.
Lithium ion batteries are not recyclable and the reality is they are unlikely to be so in the near future due to it not being economical as they don’t contain precious metals to be recovered and there are many different types of lithium ion battery technologies. Lithium ion recycling programs only refer to small phone batteries.
No precious metals or toxic materials in manufacture or operation
SoNick being common salt has no toxic materials. Lithium is very toxic as is lead and Redflow batteries contain bromine. Currently lithium ion is relatively cheap but forecasts for readily available lithium, just taking into account electric cars, are expected to peak by 2020. There is a lot more lithium available but it will be much more expensive to mine. Currently lithium ion is mainly mined in South America in very unhealthy conditions for the miners.
Very low total cost of ownership
Although SoNick batteries may appear to be more expensive up front over the lifetime cost of the battery they are actually one of the cheapest batteries due to the lack of maintenance and no need for special housing or ongoing cooling requirements
SoNick battery is the smallest and lightest battery and has the highest energy density of any battery.
If you would like to know more about getting safe, reliable, recyclable, SoNick (molten salt) battery storage for your own home, business or micro-grid application visit us at http://quantum.GridEdge.com.au