Further Study of the Intrinsic Safety of Internally Shorted Lithium and Lithium-Ion Cells Within Methane-Air

Details

• Personal Author:
  Dubaniewicz, Thomas H. Jr. ; DuCarme, Joseph P.
• Description:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) researchers continue to study the potential for lithium and lithium-ion battery thermal runaway from an internal short circuit in equipment for use in underground coal mines. Researchers conducted cell crush tests using a plastic wedge within a 20-L explosion-containment chamber filled with 6.5% CH4-air to simulate the mining hazard. The present work extends earlier findings to include a study of LiFePO4 cells crushed while under charge, prismatic form factor LiCoO2 cells, primary spiral-wound constructed LiMnO2 cells, and crush speed influence on thermal runaway susceptibility. The plastic wedge crush was a more severe test than the flat plate crush with a prismatic format cell. Test results indicate that prismatic Saft MP 174565 LiCoO2 and primary spiral-wound Saft FRIWO M52EX LiMnO2 cells pose a CH4-air ignition hazard from internal short circuit. Under specified test conditions, A123 systems ANR26650M1A LiFePO4 cylindrical cells produced no chamber ignitions while under a charge of up to 5A. Common spiral-wound cell separators are too thin to meet intrinsic safety standards provisions for distance through solid insulation, suggesting that a hard internal short circuit within these cells should be considered for intrinsic safety evaluation purposes, even as a non-countable fault. Observed flames from a LiMnO2 spiral-wound cell after a chamber ignition within an inert atmosphere indicate a sustained exothermic reaction within the cell. The influence of crush speed on ignitions under specified test conditions was not statistically significant. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Coal Coal Mining Electrical Equipment And Supplies Explosions Fires Mining Occupational Health Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety Safety Management

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• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Batteries Coal-mining Electronic-equipment Equipment-design Equipment-reliability Explosion Protection Explosive-hazards Exposure-levels Fire-hazards Hazardous Areas Hazards Intrinsic Safety Lithium-ion Milling-industry Mining-industry Mining Industry Risk-factors Safety-equipment Safety-measures Standardization Underground-mining

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• Series:
  Mining Publications
• ISSN:
  0950-4230
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 3 ; Pennsylvania
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  OMSHR - Office of Mine Safety and Health Research
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  165-173
• Volume:
  32
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20045308
• Citation:
  J Loss Prev Process Ind 2014 Nov; 32:165-173
• Contact Point Address:
  Thomas H. Dubaniewicz Jr., National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Office of Mine Safety and Health Research, P.O. Box 18070, Pittsburgh, PA 15236
• Email:
  tcd5@cdc.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2015
• NORA Priority Area:
  Mining
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:ce85c8f9b061b142386186421dc248d5c634bc084a4a9ca1409ff8d3e9880726b23d9eb41b3c2ced662d7a9179466a4839d3e4dabd7f021dfc18dbcef83542dd
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/228070/cdc_228070_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 876.70 KB ]