How lithium batteries can be safely put out

Traditional Fire-fighting equipment and technology can extinguish traditional car fires. Then an electric car equipped with a large number of high-pressure batteries may have an explosion risk if it encounters a fire, because the electrolytes in the battery unit are flammable and will burn quickly under the exposure of the flame. How can it be safer to extinguish the fire? What do you need attention for? See what Tesla and General Motors suggest.

Tesla's emergency rescue manual provides guidance on fire fighting for electric vehicles:

1. If there is a small fire, the flame does not spread to the high-pressure battery part. You can use a carbon dioxide or ABC dry powder fire extinguisher to extinguish the fire.

2. When thoroughly checking fire conditions, do not contact any high-pressure parts and always use insulation tools for inspection.

3. The inflatable bottle, gas pillar, and other components that store the gas can reach the extreme temperature of the boiling liquid expanding steam explosion. Before checking the "hot area" of the accident, the dismantling with appropriate fine protection should be carried out.

4. If a high-voltage battery is bent, twisted, or damaged in a fire, it may become unsatisfactory or suspect a problem with the battery. Then the amount of water used for fire fighting should not be too small, and the amount of fire water should be sufficient.

5. It can take up to 24 hours for the battery to catch fire. Using a thermal imaging camera ensures that the high voltage battery is completely cooled before the end of the accident. If you do not have a thermal imaging camera, you must monitor if the battery will re-ignite. Smoke indicates that the battery is still hot, and monitoring is maintained until at least one hour after the battery no longer smokes.

6. There is also a recurrence danger that the law enforcement or trailer personnel do not understand the method and the battery will be reburning. ModelS electric vehicles have previously been flooded, fired, or have been damaged by high-pressure batteries after a collision. The relevant personnel will always dispose of it in an open area within 50 feet without exposure.

Warning 1: When a fire occurs, do not touch any part of the vehicle, taking into account that the entire vehicle is powered. Wear personal protective gear, including self contained breathing apparatus.

Warning 2: Always assume that all high voltage components are powered! Cutting, crushing, or touching high-pressure components can cause serious injury or death.

Gm's emergency rescue manual provides guidance on fire fighting for electric vehicles:

If the battery reaches a sufficiently high temperature, leaks and releases electrolytes, the electrolyte must be flammable. This requires a lot of water to cool the battery and extinguish the fire, because the DC and AC systems are not grounded, firefighters can safely use water as the main extinguishing agent, and there is no danger of electric shock. ABC dry powder fire extinguishers do not extinguish battery flames. Firefighters should avoid direct internal contact in any high-pressure assembly during fire fighting or relief operations, which can potentially lead to electric shocks.

In short, firefighters and other rescue workers must go to the fire to ensure that they understand the technology and operation of electric cars. This underlines the importance of safety training. Firefighters should also use complete personal protective equipment and self-contained respirators to protect themselves from heat damage and avoid inhaling toxic substances from the combustion of vehicle parts.

According to the first electric network understanding, the China Automobile Engineering Society is working with the Ministry of Public Security's fire research institute to do fire extinguishing experiments on lithium batteries. Through preliminary experimental observations in the early stages, conventional fire extinguishing agents such as dry powder foam can not basically extinguish battery fires, and effective fire extinguishing agents are in the process of screening. It still takes time to test and verify. Fire control regulations and conditions for fire protection facilities for buses and charging stations are also under study and are being promoted. Battery-based automatic fire extinguishing systems are also under development. Eventually, time and practical experience are required to solve the problem.

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