5 minute read
FIRE, FIRE! LI-ION BATTERIES UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT AGAIN
Worries about the dangers of high tech lithium battery fires have been a concern from the earliest days of the first lithium cells. It is still a problem. With mass adoption in the EV market looming — some are predicting that there will be 700 million on the roads in 30 years’ time — it is worth looking under the bonnet just to check the battery or the BMS.
Li-ion batteries under the spotlight again as LG Chem recalls home packs ... GM recalls 68,667 Bolts
Another day, another lithium fire.
Or that’s the way it seems. The amount of lithium fire recalls in electric vehicles hit a record high in 2020. That’s according to an IdTechEx research paper on thermal management published in early December.
In China alone, between January and October, 10,579 battery electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids were recalled due to fire hazards across seven OEMs.
Among major automakers — see boxed item facing — the second half of last year has proven to be the worst six months for lithium EV battery recalls ever.
The cost of these recalls is not frequently mentioned but they can be astronomical. The cost of the recall of the Galaxy Note 7 in 2016, for example, was reckoned to be at least $5.3 billion.
What is also not widely known is that reputable world-class companies still find difficulties in solving the fire hazard. Sony, for example, had major recalls for its laptop and notepad batteries in 2006, 2008, 2014, 2016 and 2017.
The latest lithium battery recall comes from LG Energy Solution, the battery firm spun off from LG Chem. On December 16 it recalled its lithium-ion home battery systems in Michigan, US — just over a week after it launched a new line of the products.
Five reports of LG Chem RESU 10H fires, resulting in minor property damage but no injuries, were mentioned on the US Consumer Product Safety Commission’s Recalls page.
“The home batteries can overheat, posing a risk of fire and emission of harmful smoke,” says the document, which specifies that 1,815 units sold between January 2017 to March 2019 are subject to recall. They sold for around $8,000 each.
A new range of LG RESU home batteries was launched at an online event on December 7 in Europe and the US and Australia on December 10.
The new LG RESU Prime product comprises the LG RESU 10H and 16H Prime products, offering ‘largecapacity, high-powered batteries courtesy of industry-leading energy density, while allowing much needed sustainable energy use through its proactive efforts towards fair cobalt procurement’.
There is no suggestion that the new range poses a fire risk, ‘having passed
December 2020
On December 16 LG Chem recalled its lithiumion home battery systems in Michigan, US — just over a week after it launched a new line of the products.
November 2020
Polestar recalled the majority of its Polestar 2 models sold globally to replace faulty battery inverters. Some 4,586 vehicles were affected by the recall.
all safety tests conducted in the harshest conditions’, the company said.
As well as the RESU Prime, LG Energy also unveiled an LG RESU FLEX at its online events.
LG Chem also supplied the utilityscale McMicken battery in Arizona, which entered thermal runaway and exploded in April 2019, injuring four firefighters.
An investigation by Arizona Public Service concluded that cell failure kicked off the chain of events that led to the explosion.
Recalls on the rise
Meanwhile, General Motors has recalled 68,667 Chevrolet Bolts, telling owners not to park their cars near their house or in their garage for risk of fire. The recall was announced on November 13 after five battery fires were recorded.
The batteries, made by Korean manufacturer LG Chem, are at their most dangerous when at or near full capacity, a safety recall report from the US National Highway Transport Safety Administration says.
“The high voltage battery could catch fire when charged to full or nearly full capacity,” says the announcement, which also says that to mitigate the risk, GM has developed software that limits the charging to 90% of full capacity.
“The condition is specific to battery cells produced at LG Chem’s Ochang, Korea plant that are design level 2.1,” the recall document says.
“From July 20, 2020 through to August 26, GM received four claims alleging that the high-voltage battery pack in a Chevrolet Bolt caused a fire. GM opened a product investigation on August 26, to investigate these claims.
“From August 26 through November 5, GM’s product investigation team conducted field and warranty data searches and onsite vehicle inspections to investigate the origin of the alleged fires. GM also worked with LG Chem to identify a potential root cause.
“In total, GM has identified 12 firerelated allegations involving 2017 through 2019 model year Chevrolet Bolt vehicles that may be battery related.
“Of these claims, GM has, to date, confirmed that a battery-related fire appears to have occurred in five cases.”
Instructions to car owners have been given as to how to limit the charge capacity of their vehicles as an interim measure until repairs have been carried out, but if they are unable to do so they are advised not to keep their vehicles in a garage or even a car port.
Between January and October 2020 in China, 10,579 EVs and plug-in hybrids were recalled due to fire hazards across seven OEMs, but this was s small undercurrent of news given the huge recalls that have hit the international markets in recent months
November 2020
General Motors recalled 68,667 Chevrolet Bolts, and told owners not to park their cars near their house or in their garage for risk of fire.
October 2020
German carmaker BMW warned customers in August not to charge its plug-in hybrid cars because of a fire risk with batteries. In October the initial 40,000 recalls were topped up by a further 27,000. The 3, 5 and 7 series, Mini Cooper Countryman and i8 were among other models using lithium batteries made by Samsung.
October 2020
Hyundai said it would globally recall some 77,000 Kona Electric models manufactured between September 2017 and March, 2020, according to Yonhap news agency. The recall comes after 13 fires in the model have been reported since 2018.
August 2020
Ford recalled more than 20,000 Kuga Plug-In Hybrids due to battery safety concerns. In some instances, faulty batteries overheated when charging, causing fires. Ford referred to its recall as a ‘Safety Action’.
