A leading South Korean automotive parts supplier, claims to have invented a battery system that extinguishes fires. Wikipedia advises the company is the “world’s No. 6 automotive supplier”, and ranked #464 on the Forbes Global 2000 index. This information adds credibility to a remarkable claim, and we investigate it further.
Highlights of The System That Puts Out Battery Fires
Thermal runaway, and the battery fires that follow, are alarming administrations worldwide. The innovative new system prevents heat transfer to adjacent cells, while spraying a fire-extinguishing agent on the malfunctioning one(s).
Previous efforts by other manufacturers have involved preventing thermal runaway, and, if it occurs, limiting it to the cell concerned. Various governments have put regulations in place aimed at slowing thermal runaway, and stopping it occurring in the first place.
But this leading South Korean automotive parts supplier appears to have taken a more pragmatic approach. “Okay, so we have a burning battery cell,” they seem to say. “Lets get down to the matter of extinguishing the fire at cell level”. This approach is what makes their innovation unique, and worth considering.
Components of Battery System for Extinguishing Fires
This new battery system that extinguishes fires comprises a case for each cell with a fire extinguishing device, and a piece of software managing the system as follows:
- First, the software builds a data base of normal operating parameters.
- Thereafter, it monitors battery temperature, voltage and internal pressure.
- If it detects an anomaly, then it first determines which cell(s) are affected.
- Then it releases the fire extinguishing agent onto the particular cell(s).
The total fire extinguishing agent per battery, is five times the capacity of a seven-pound home fire firefighting device. The company claims its agent “has excellent cooling, insulation, and permeability properties, and is harmless to both the environment and human body”.
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