Vanadium is an element that is pervasive, but a lot of people haven’t realized just how pervasive it is. Vanadium is used in varying degrees in several applications. One is as a strengthener of steel and an alloy with titanium. It is also used in the emerging field of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) for electric vehicles (EVs), both the four-wheel or two-wheel type. I think this usage is one that shouldn’t be relied upon in the near term. Vanadium has also come to be used in what’s known as the vanadium redox battery (VRB)—a large-scale battery used for alternative energy storage.
Over 90% of vanadium produced today is used as a steel strengthener. In 2010, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), 56,000 tons of vanadium were produced globally (U.S. figures are not reported), so obviously the majority of this is used in the buildout of infrastructure that is occurring disproportionately in countries such as China. One company in particular, Denison Mines Corp. (TSX:DML; NYSE.A:DNN), which is thought of as a uranium producer, produced about 1,000 tons of vanadium last year as a coproduct of its uranium mining in the western United States. Aside from that, vanadium is mined mainly in China, Russia and South Africa.
The use of vanadium in LIBs for EVs is not significant yet, but could eventually become important as the transportation sector electrifies. One of the real challenges surrounding LIBs is settling on the most effective battery chemistry. In other words, what battery chemistry allows for the greatest number of charge recycles, depletes its charge the slowest and allows us to recharge the fastest? Today, based on my research, lithium-vanadium-phosphate batteries appear to offer the highest charge and the fastest recharge cycle. It seems that the lithium-vanadium-phosphate battery holds a great deal of promise, offering a blend of substantial power and reliability. I am watching for advances in battery chemistry here with great interest.
I am actually reading a book now titled “Bottled Lightning: Superbatteries, Electric Cars, and the New Lithium Economy” by Seth Fletcher. The debate over the “best” or “optimal” battery is not a new one and the book discusses the history of this argument well.
In our research at House Mountain, we focus on several macro themes, one being accessibility to cheap and reliable energy. It’s no secret that increasing GDP and access to cheap energy go hand-in-hand. Energy storage is going to become more and more important and this is where the VRB can play a significant role. I wouldn’t call VRBs an emerging technology because they were actually developed in the late 1980s, so the idea of using vanadium to store electricity has been around for a number of years. VRBs just haven’t been in mass, widespread use. Growing economies in countries like China and India and even in continents like South America are becoming accustomed to an increase in the quality of life. In my opinion, to maintain and increase that quality of life, you need access to energy—cheap and reliable energy. The electricity grid has been described as the only supply chain without storage capacity. VRBs can address this. (Quote ) So EV batteries AND Electrical Storage solutions . Right . Info is power. Long CUI.