An experimental study about the effect of arrangement on the fire behaviors of lithium-ion batteries

Safety problem is always a significant consideration before wider field of application such as mobile phones, computers and new energy vehicles. However, the knowledge on the battery combustion behavior is limited. To increase the safety margin, the fire hazard of lithium-ion batteries should be considered. An experimental study of different arrangements: horizontal 4 x 1, horizontal 2 x 2 and vertical 2 x 2 lithium-ion batteries fire behaviors was conducted. The photographs of fire processes and the batteries before and after the fire tests were directly shown to describe the fire hazard. The mass loss rate, heat release rate and heat flux were used to analyze the combustion behavior more detailed. Based on the results, lithium-ion batteries are volatile and burning with potentially deadly explosions. The arrangements can affect the ignition time, heat release rate, released heat and the heat flux, while the way of mass loss and the total mass loss are similar. The results indicate that batteries with bigger heating area have more risky and fierce fires compared with others.