Difficulties in explosion-proofing in the energy storage industry

Are battery storage systems causing fires & explosions?

Unfortunately, a small but significant fraction of these systems has experienced field failures resulting in both fires and explosions. A comprehensive review of these issues has been published in the EPRI Battery Storage Fire Safety Roadmap (report 3002022540 ), highlighting the need for specific eforts around explosion hazard mitigation.

Can explosion prevention systems mitigate gas concentrations according to NFPA 69 standards?

Simulations are often preferred to determine if an explosion prevention system can effectively mitigate gas concentrations according to NFPA 69 standards. CFD methodology can assist with the performance-based design of explosion prevention systems containing exhaust systems.

Does a lithium-ion energy storage unit need explosion control?

To address the safety issues associated with lithium-ion energy storage, NFPA 855 and several other fire codes require any BESS the size of a small ISO container or larger to be provided with some form of explosion control. This includes walk-in units, cabinet style BESS and buildings.

What causes Bess fires & explosions?

Examples of root causes for BESS fires and explosions. The root causes of BESS fires and explosions can be attributed to a variety of factors, such as: Improper design is often a significant issue, where systems may not be sufficiently engineered to withstand operational stresses or may lack essential safety measures.

Can CFD be used to design an explosion prevention system?

CFD methodology can be extended to design an explosion prevention system for any ESS enclosure. Results can also provide the controlled release rate of flammable and toxic materials which is useful information for first responders and to assess environmental impacts.

How to design a Bess explosion prevention system?

The critical challenge in designing an explosion prevention system for a BESS is to quantify the source term that can describe the release of battery gas during a thermal runaway event. Hence, full-scale fire test data such as from UL 9540A testing are important inputs for the gas release model.