Lithium-ion and solid-state batteries are very much alike. Both types use lithium to produce electrical energy and they have an anode (the battery's negative terminal), a cathode (the battery's positive terminal), and an electrolyte, which helps transfer ions from the cathode to the anode and vice versa. They primarily differ in. Lithium-ion batteries are unfortunately flammable and this has mostly to do with their liquid electrolytes, which are volatile and unstable when exposed to high temperatures. In contrast,. Sodium-ion batteries come up a bit short here. Sodium ions are larger and denser than lithium ions, which means that we need a whole more lot of the former to store and produce the. Sodium's abundance naturally makes it a less expensive option. It also costs less to extract and purify. On top of that, sodium-ion cells can be made with ample metals such as iron and. Here we have the battle of the elements: lithium vs sodium. Lithium is a relatively rare element on Earth and its increasing demand doesn't come.