N252-085 TITLE: Development of Safe, Robust, Sodium-Ion Battery for Naval Aviation
OUSD (R&E) CRITICAL TECHNOLOGY AREA(S): Advanced Materials;Renewable Energy Generation and Storage
The technology within this topic is restricted under the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (ITAR), 22 CFR Parts 120-130, which controls the export and import of defense-related material and services, including export of sensitive technical data, or the Export Administration Regulation (EAR), 15 CFR Parts 730-774, which controls dual use items. Offerors must disclose any proposed use of foreign nationals (FNs), their country(ies) of origin, the type of visa or work permit possessed, and the statement of work (SOW) tasks intended for accomplishment by the FN(s) in accordance with the Announcement. Offerors are advised foreign nationals proposed to perform on this topic may be restricted due to the technical data under US Export Control Laws.
OBJECTIVE: Design and develop a sodium-ion (Na-ion), secondary, battery solution for use across manned and unmanned aircraft that meets the environmental, operating, and storage conditions of Naval Aviation battery systems; provides increased safety over current lithium-ion battery solutions; and leverages domestic materials supply chains.
DESCRIPTION: U.S. Navy and Marine Corps currently fields lead-acid (Pb-acid), nickel-cadmium (NiCd), and limited lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries for use across aviation platforms. Pb-acid and NiCd batteries have significantly lower energy density and service life than currently fielded Li-ion batteries used in the commercial electric vehicle market, resulting in negative impacts to aircraft performance and readiness. While Li-ion batteries are significantly more energy dense than legacy chemistries, the potential for thermal runaway events, high cost, and supply chains reliant on foreign entities of concern (FEOC) create safety, cost, and availability risks to programs. Na-ion batteries offer improvements to energy density comparable to Li-ion solutions while utilizing materials abundant domestically and abroad and may offer significant improvements to safety due to their wide thermal operating envelope. Na-ion batteries are currently in development and fielded commercially by FEOCs abroad.
The objective is to design and develop a sodium-ion (Na-ion), secondary, battery solution for use across manned and unmanned aircraft that meets the environmental, operating, and storage conditions of Naval Aviation battery systems, provides increased safety over current lithium-ion battery solutions, and leverages domestic materials supply chains. Therefore, the intent of this SBIR topic is to develop a Na-ion battery that can meet the harsh environmental operating and storage conditions of Naval Aviation battery systems while providing weight and energy savings to the platform with safety improvements and leveraging the materials required in the domestic supply chain.
PHASE I: Define and develop a concept for feasible battery designs including requirements compliance matrices and defined trades. Determine the feasibility of a Na-ion battery design that leverages requirements from multiple, Navy-led, battery commonality efforts that are traceable to systems engineering models of the MIL-PRF-29595 General Specification for Aircraft Rechargeable Lithium Batteries [Ref 3], its associated slash sheets, and small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS) battery designs. Develop a preliminary design review (PDR) level design and recommended validations leveraging the S9310-AQ-SAF-010 Navy Lithium Battery Safety Program [Ref 4] and MIL-PRF-29595 performance specification modified for a Na-ion battery systems.
The Phase I effort will include prototype plans to be developed under Phase II.
PHASE II: Develop five (5) prototype Na-ion batteries to validate improvements to performance, including weight savings, across operational and storage environmental envelopes. Demonstrate use of the domestic materials supply chain by providing relevant bill of materials (BOMs) for prototypes, as well as outlook on future domestic materials supply chain required for Na-ion battery components. Provide report of validation findings and supply chain analysis to Navy customers and program offices that demonstrates benefits of Na-ion over commercial Li-ion solutions.
PHASE III DUAL USE APPLICATIONS: Develop thirty-one (31) batteries for qualification testing to the S9310-AQ-SAF-010, MIL-PRF-29595 and designated slash sheet, MIL-STD-461, MIL-STD-704, MIL-STD-901, and MIL-STD-167 specifications and instructions for successful aircraft and ship integration. Develop four (4) additional batteries for use during flight test and demonstration for transition to the application platform identified in Phase I.
To date, no Na-ion main ship aircraft battery has been developed for commercial aviation. The Na-ion battery benefits of weight savings while providing robust performance and safety across a wider envelope than Li-ion solutions may be transferrable to commercial aviation. Additionally, if Na-ion solutions cannot meet space, weight and power (SWaP) requirements for use in aircraft, the technology can be transitioned to efforts supporting electrification of Ground Support Equipment (eGSE), Uninterruptable Power Supplies (UPS), and grid energy storage domains.
REFERENCES:
KEYWORDS: Sodium; Sodium-ion; Battery; Main Ship Battery; Lithium; Lithium-ion
** TOPIC NOTICE ** |
The Navy Topic above is an "unofficial" copy from the Navy Topics in the DoD 25.2 SBIR BAA. Please see the official DoD Topic website at www.dodsbirsttr.mil/submissions/solicitation-documents/active-solicitations for any updates. The DoD issued its Navy 25.2 SBIR Topics pre-release on April 2, 2025 which opens to receive proposals on April 23, 2025, and closes May 21, 2025 (12:00pm ET). Direct Contact with Topic Authors: During the pre-release period (April 2, 2025, through April 22, 2025) proposing firms have an opportunity to directly contact the Technical Point of Contact (TPOC) to ask technical questions about the specific BAA topic. The TPOC contact information is listed in each topic description. Once DoD begins accepting proposals on April 23, 2025 no further direct contact between proposers and topic authors is allowed unless the Topic Author is responding to a question submitted during the Pre-release period. DoD On-line Q&A System: After the pre-release period, until May 7, 2025, at 12:00 PM ET, proposers may submit written questions through the DoD On-line Topic Q&A at https://www.dodsbirsttr.mil/submissions/login/ by logging in and following instructions. In the Topic Q&A system, the questioner and respondent remain anonymous but all questions and answers are posted for general viewing. DoD Topics Search Tool: Visit the DoD Topic Search Tool at www.dodsbirsttr.mil/topics-app/ to find topics by keyword across all DoD Components participating in this BAA.
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| 4/28/25 | Q. | For this topic is improving Na-ion cell level performance characteristics of interest? |
| A. | While improving the performance of Na-ion cells is an important component of this effort, please keep in mind the stated goal of Phase I is to develop a preliminary design review (PDR) level design of the complete battery system. | |
| 4/18/25 | Q. | How broad is the definition of the "Na-ion" technology sought in this topic? Are all Na-based battery technologies (e.g. sodium metal chloride / sodium-beta batteries) eligible for submission or is the topic focused exclusively on more Li-ion-like technologies? |
| A. | We are not being prescriptive by dictating specific designs or formulations. However, please keep in mind that the proposed Sodium-based solution must demonstrate that it can meet the performance, environmental, and storage requirements of Naval aviation applications. | |
| 4/14/25 | Q. | With respect to the question submitted on 04/13/2025, I could find no reference to specific deliverables for Phase I optional funding. Are there none specificied to date/ |
| A. | The deliverables for the Phase I Option period, if exercised, will be outlined in the contract. The Phase I Option deliverables will be similar to the deliverables of the Phase I Base; Phase I Option kick-off brief, Phase I Option progress report, Phase I Option final report. The Phase I Option period furthers the effort in preparation for Phase II and will bridge the funding gap between the end of Phase I and the start of Phase II. | |
| 4/13/25 | Q. | Are options being considered for Phase I proposals fo r this topic thzt would raise the funding above $140,000? |
| A. | Yes. Please review the Navy SBIR 25.2 Phase I instruction document which indicates:
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| 4/7/25 | Q. | Can an alternative electricity storage solution (not Li- or Na-ion) be submitted to this topic? |
| A. | No, we are not open to energy storage solutions outside of Na-ion, as Na-ion solutions are the intended technology to be developed under the topic (hence its title). This topic is not a broad energy storage topic- we focused on a particular technical solution that we would like to explore further. |