Experimental Study on Fire Characteristics of Lithium-ion Battery using Cone Calorimeter

Abstract

The lithium-ion battery is the most popular type of secondary battery because of its high energy density. It has been widely used in mobile power and energy storage systems. However, several accidents can occur in systems using lithium-ion batteries, and most of the reported losses have resulted from battery fires and explosions. In this study, a cone calorimeter experiment was performed to investigate the fire characteristics of lithium-ion batteries and assess their heat release rate (HRR), which is the most representative property for fire events. Fires involving cylindrical standard batteries consist of two combustion stages. The first burning stage is due to the package material and intercalated lithium of the battery, and the second stage is attributed to the thermal runaway reactions of the electrolyte. The second combustion stage has a greater peak HRR than the first stage and is accompanied by a violent explosion. In a comparison of the HRRs with the oxygen consumption rate, the HRRs measured on the basis of the mass loss rate show higher maximum values and extremely narrow heat release times.