S E C U R I T Y
DAFO VEHICLE INTRODUCING LI-IONFIRE™ INCREASING THE SAFETY OF ELECTRIC AND HYBRID ELECTRIC VEHICLE OPERATIONS
As there is a global transition to renewable fuels, there is an increasing demand for electric or hybrid vehicles (EV and HEV). However, knowledge is limited about the new fire risks associated with vehicles having these new energy carriers.
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onsequences connected to risks of Li-ion batteries, in case of a malfunction, can be serious, for example, they can result in toxic gas emissions or explosion. In collaboration with the coordinator, Dafo Vehicle Fire Protection, an EU initiative has built a fire protection system that addresses and mitigates these risks effectively and safely.
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Fire suppression systems for vehicles have been on the market for decades, and are widely used and regulated across a wide variety of industries. However, these systems are tested to be effective on vehicles with combustion engines, and all test standards are designed with this in mind.
The growth of the electric and hybrid electric vehicle industry has accelerated the demand for new fire suppression technologies. “With the rapid introduction of electric and hybrid electric vehicles in public transport, there are new challenges because they present totally different risk scenarios,” says Anders Gulliksson of Dafo Vehicle, coordinator of the EUfunded Li-IonFire (Automated e-vehicle Lithium Ion Battery Early Warning and Fire Suppression System) project. “When the commonly used Li-ion batteries fail through short circuiting, overcharging, high temperatures, mechanical damage and overheating, this might cause thermal runaway and the release of a flammable electrolyte, which makes fire extinguishing very difficult. In addition to the dramatic fire scenario with the rapid increase in heat, there are a lot of potentially toxic gases being emitted”. A comprehensive solution for fire mitigation The project partners, including Dafo Vehicle Fire Protection and RISE Research Institutes of Sweden, explored different techniques to detect potential battery failure, as early as
26 | Industry EMEA | September 2020
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