Lithium Ion Batteries: A life-threatening

product we use more and more often.

We live in a fast world, continuously changing. We need our technology around us, every single moment
of the day – and night. Your phone, notebook or tablet running out of battery is one of your daily
struggles. How do we meet the global growing demand for lightweight, rechargeable power?; Lithium-
Ion batteries.

Our planet is running out of it’s fossil fuel sources which forces us to search for alternative energy. The
sudden rise of electric cars is on the verge of disrupting oil markets ans this scale-up of electric cars
increases the demand for renewable energy and drives down the cost of Lithium-Ion batteries.

So the Lithium Ion Battery seems like the ideal solution for making our lives more comfortable and our
world more durable. True that, but on the onther hand Lithium batteries can be life-threatening

Why are these batteries so dangerous? Part of the problem

stems from what makes them so popular: They pack a lot of
power for their size. But if they short-circuit they can overheat
and create a chain reaction known as “thermal runaway,” a
cascading effect in which they reach very high temperatures
and emit thick smoke and toxic gasses that can fuel a fire or an
explosion, especially if they’re packed tightly with other lithium
batteries. All aircraft, cargo or passenger, come equipped with
fire suppression systems in cargo holds, but they are not
enough to stop such an intense blaze.

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What is a thermal runaway effect?
Lithium-Ion Battery cells have a chance of spontaneously shorting, which heats the interior gradually to
130°C where the “separator” film melts. This triggers an explosive release of electric energy where the
end cap ruptures, a flare emerges briefly (~1s), and then the cell materials combust for up to one
minute, releasing heat and driving the cell T > 500°C. Neighboring cells can also be heated above the
critical 130°C potentially causing them to short with the same consequences resulting in thermal
runaway.

A thermal runaway can be caused by;

• External heating • Structural damage
• Over charging • Crush
• Over Discharging • External short
• High current charging

Main contributing factors:

• Poor design, poor integration
• Poor manufacturing quality
• Poor safety monitoring / protection
• Poor handling / storage / packaging conditions

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The Facts
A total of 171 incidents between 1991 and 2016 was recorded involving batterys carried as
baggage or cargo on airplanes. (recorded by the US Federal Aviation Administration)

2006: Destruction of UPS plane in Philadelphia caused by ignition of Li-Ion batteries, resulting in the
death of two crewmembers. Besides the intense fire and toxic fumes, thick smoke inside the cockpit was
reported.

Destruction of UPS plane in Philadelphia caused by ignition of Li-Ion batteries

2010: Two fatalities when a cargo plane crashed shortly after take off in Dubai. Cargo: 81.000 Lithium
batteries.

Cargo plane crashed shortly after take off in Dubai. Cargo: 81.000 Lithium batteries.

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On August 7, 2004, a shipment of lithium ion batteries being loaded on a FedEx aircraft in Memphis,
TN caught fire. The fire was discovered while being loaded onto a flight destined to Paris from Memphis,
TN.

A shipment of lithium ion batteries being loaded on a FedEx aircraft in Memphis, TN caught fire.

January 16, 2013: a serious incident involving the main battery occurred aboard a 787 airplane
operated by All Nippon Airways during a flight from Yamaguchi to Tokyo, Japan. The airplane made an
emergency landing in Takamatsu, Japan, shortly after takeoff.

Another known fact is that the Malesian MH370 aircraft carried a consignment of lithium ion
batteries. This has given rise to the theory that this freight may have caused a fire in the cargo hold,
which necessitated the captain to change course toward the west looking for the nearest airport to land.

The Malesian MH370 aircraft carried a consignment of lithium ion batteries.

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On 26 April 2014, a passenger checked in four bags for a flight from Melbourne,to Nad. The operating
aircraft was a Boeing 737. Before departure, a ground engineer observed smoke emanating from the aft
cargo hold, alerted the aerodrome rescue and firefighting (ARFF) service. The ARFF and Australian
Federal Police subsequently inspected all four of the bags checked in by the passenger and found 19
batteries intact and an additional 6-8 that were destroyed by a fire cause by Lithium batter thermal
runaway.

December 2015, Hoverboards, or self-balancing scooters, have been linked with at least 99 electrical
fires in the U.S., according to the the Consumer Product Safety Commission. Delta Air Lines banned
hoverboards in carry-on and checked baggage, citing the product’s fire hazard risk. British Airways
and JetBlue, among others, also bans the devices from flights.

Hoverboards, or self-balancing scooters, have been linked with at least 99 electrical fires in the U.S.

1st of April 2016: The ICAO prohibited transportation of Li Ion batteries as cargo on passenger aircrafts. The
FAA and EASA highly recommends airlines to take care for solutions, preventing propagation of fire caused by
thermal runaway fires.

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August 2016: As part of its ‘Electric Road Trip’ tour for the summer, Tesla stopped in Biarritz, France to
promote Model S and Model X over the weekend. During a test drive in a Model S 90D, the vehicle
suddenly made a loud noise and sent a visual alert on the dashboard stating that there was a problem
with “charging”. The Tesla Model S caught on fire only a moment later.

During a test drive in a Model S 90D, the vehicle suddenly made a loud noise and sent a visual alert on the
dashboard stating that there was a problem with “charging”.

June 2016: HP recalled nearly 50,000 HP, Compaq, HP ProBook, HP ENVY, Compaq Presario, and HP Pavilion
computers after seven reports of battery packs overheating, melting or charring, including four reports of property
damage totaling about $4,000.
And the list goes on.. Many more incidents involving fires caused by exploding Lithium Ion batteries can be
found on the internet. Not only incidents that occur during transportation but also in the homes of people (phones,
notebooks, cars, vacuum cleaners, drone batteries and other Portable Electronic Devices catching fire)

Forfyre BV

Advanced thinking in Passive Fire Protection & High Temperature Insulation

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Introducing the The LithiumSafe™ Battery Bag
Halon fire surpression systems inside aircraft, the traditional hand-extinguisher or fire blankets – studies
prove that all these safety measurements are not effective.
The most effective way to prevent the spread of flames in case of a Lithium battery catching fire is to
contain the fire and resulting explosion for a certain duration of time, depening on the type of
application. This can be done using special designed ‘containment bags’, in which the burning device
must be placed and sealed.
The LithiumSafe™ Battery Bag is the first engineered solution providing excellent passive fire protection
properties and complete containment of thick smoke and toxic gasses.
Our team of tailors & engineers developed an unique configuration of advanced high temperature
insulation materials – resulting in a lightweight, flexible product with high mechanical strength.
The LithiumSafe™ Battery Bag can be supplied in any size and configuration depending on the
required duration of fire protection. Also, the Battery Bag can be personalised with a company logo
and/or full layout.

Personalised LithiumSafe™ Battery Bag for notebooks

Forfyre BV

Advanced thinking in Passive Fire Protection & High Temperature Insulation

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 LithiumSafe™ Battery Bag for smartphones or loose batteries

Watch the LithiumSafe™ Battery Bag in action.

Several tests were carried out with different Battery Bag designs to determine the highest passive fire protection
performance possible. This series of tests were organized in coorperation with the local fire department, and was
requested by a major European airline. The goal of the test was to contain a fire from a overheated notebook batterypack
for a duration of at least 30 minutes. It was decided by the client that this would give a flight crew sufficient time to make a
safe emergency landing when flying over land. The batterypack was heated up by using an electric cooking plate, together
placed inside the bag. A portable meter and an infrared heat camera were used to register all the temperatures. The result
of test was impressive; the LithiumSafe™ Battery Bag contained both the fire and the smoke much longer than actually
was requested.

If you would like to see the LithiumSafe™ Battery Bag in action, please request our demonstration video by filling
out the contact form on our website: www.forfyre.com

Forfyre BV

Advanced thinking in Passive Fire Protection & High Temperature Insulation

www.forfyre.com | +31 (0)10 261 3525 | info@forfyre.com