frezik

joined 1 year ago
[–] frezik@midwest.social 2 points 3 months ago (2 children)

You will almost certainly see sodium-ion in cars. The Na batts already manufactured have a similar Wh/kg to Li batteries in EVs today. That's because Li has progressed further, and it takes a few years for new batteries to go into actual EVs. Manufactures don't necessarily use the top of the line batts, either, for cost or availability reasons.

If you feel a VW id.4 or a Hyundai Ioniq has sufficient range right now (or could have sufficient range if charging infrastructure was a better), then an Na batt will also be good enough. It'll also be cheaper. Those cars come off the assembly line with Li batts that are similar to the 160 Wh/kg that Na batts out of CATL were doing in 2021.

[–] frezik@midwest.social 7 points 3 months ago

It's also suspicious how they talk about the volumetric efficiency and dance around mass efficiency. Taking up less space is nice, and it can't be completely ignored, but it's not the primary thing EVs need. It's not even that big of a deal for stationary grid storage.

[–] frezik@midwest.social 2 points 3 months ago (1 children)

It's actually been about 8% in recent years, but historically 5%. We'll see which one holds, but either compounds to doubling capacity in shorter time than you might think.

[–] frezik@midwest.social 1 points 3 months ago

I have such an ev right now that's in line with the numbers we're talking about here. It's good enough for a road trip. We're trying to sell our only ICE car now because we're not using it.

[–] frezik@midwest.social 1 points 3 months ago (2 children)

And you'll spend more money to get that. Not every EV needs the most capacity out there.

[–] frezik@midwest.social 3 points 3 months ago (4 children)

Volkswagen id4 today has a battery of 168 wh/kg:

https://www.batterydesign.net/vw-id-4-82kwh-battery/

CATL launched a 160 wh/kg sodium battery in 2021:

https://www.catl.com/en/news/665.html

They are already gearing up for production of 200 wh/kg sodium batteries, and in talks with automakers about it:

https://www.electrive.com/2024/05/06/catl-gears-up-for-next-gen-sibs-and-global-licensing/

If the id4 on sale now has enough range for you, then a sodium ion version will give the same while being cheaper and having fewer fire concerns. Solid state lithium will be nice, but expect them in more expensive models.

[–] frezik@midwest.social 5 points 3 months ago (11 children)

Sodium ion batteries on the market right now are about the same weight density as lithium poly batteries from a few years ago. It takes a few years for a newly manufactured battery to find its way into actual EV models. That means the newer sodium batteries have about the same performance as batteries in EVs right now. They're also cheaper and are made of more abundant materials.

Don't write off sodium batts in cars too quickly.

[–] frezik@midwest.social 4 points 3 months ago

If it's compsci, then it doesn't need to be bare metal. It should be a language that's good at demonstrating abstractions. Java wouldn't be my choice, here. Elixir would be a good one.

You might want bare metal as a prereq to an operating system course.

If it's software engineering, OTOH, then yes, a bare metal language has a bigger place.

[–] frezik@midwest.social 2 points 3 months ago

Oh, that's just the sealed bag like normal. Back then, I was using special ziploc bags with a port for a small hand pump. They seem to have stopped making those, and I switched to a regular vacuum sealer.

The diy part was the heater/pump. I based it on this:

https://makezine.com/projects/sous-vide-immersion-cooker/

The problem with this design is that because it sits above the hot water, it tends to have a lot of condensation build up inside the housing. So I rebuilt it to have power plugs for the teacup heaters and pump. Then it could be set to the side, and I could use more heaters for larger containers.

[–] frezik@midwest.social 2 points 3 months ago

I don't think I ever touched an app for my Insta Pot or its sous vide attachment, but maybe the newer ones have to?

[–] frezik@midwest.social 17 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (5 children)

Interesting, because when they were relatively new, they were also the cheap option. Sous vide used to be a $1000+ thing. I did a DIY version for around $200, but later Anova came out and it was less sketchy than my box of wires running mains voltage.

Instant Pot seems to make a pretty good one that fits around the sides of their pressure cookers.

Anova's app is basically useless. Could be nice for looking up temperatures and times for specific things, but I usually google it, anyway. Steaks are by far the most common thing I do sous vide, so it's usually preset for that. Never used the app outside of playing with it when I first got it.

One thing is for sure: I won't be recommending Anova to friends anymore.

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