GM Volt Fire Said to Prompt U.S. Probe of Lithium Batteries

[IDemo]

November 11, 2011, 1:37 PM EST

By Jeff Green, David Welch and Angela Greiling Keane

Nov. 11 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. auto-safety regulators are scrutinizing the safety of lithium-ion batteries that power all plug-in electric vehicles after a General Motors Co. Chevrolet Volt caught fire, people familiar with the probe said.

The regulators have asked automakers, including GM, Nissan Motor Co. and Ford Motor Co., that sell or have plans to sell vehicles with lithium-ion batteries about the batteries’ fire risk, four people familiar with the inquiry said.

The Volt caught fire while parked at a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration testing center in Wisconsin, three weeks after a side-impact crash test May 12, said an agency official. The official, as well as the three other people familiar with the inquiry, said they couldn’t be named because the investigation isn’t public.

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-11-11/gm-volt-fire-said-to-prompt-u-s-probe-of-lithium-batteries.html

[MADem]

1. I know someone who had those in a camera, and the thing blew up and

started a small fire in his house (got put out, fortunately). But damn--scary things, they can be--they pack a punch.

Hope they can sort this out--electric cars are going to really help de-stink the urban scene.

[PoliticAverse]

2. If you google for 'laptop fire' you can see lots of videos of what happens...

when lithium battery charging goes bad or the batteries are damaged.

Eventually the next technology will replace lithium.

[saras]

5. The next technology wont' be any better. The issue is energy density, not chemistry.

Batteries, of all kinds, will release most or all of their stored energy after being damaged or shorted. The more energy, the bigger the boom.

Any battery big enough to move a car is going to cause trouble if a car wreck shorts the battery out, even if it isn't "damaged". If it does nothing more than convert its energy into heat, there's going to be a big ball of molten metal involved.

[FarCenter]

3. Lithium batteries in laptops have caught on fire

In those cases, there were typically manufacturing defects.

Although, if a laptop battery is physically abused (as in a crash test in a car) it could cause a fire.

It's to be expected. Don't let a damaged lithium ion battery sit around for weeks before rendering it safe.

[tridim]

4. RC pilots like myself have known about the dangers for about 10 years.

Yes, they can explode violently. Several pilots have burned down their garages.

I charge my Li batteries in a fire-proof box.

[ieoeja]

6. Car got rear-ended in a recent accident in Chicago and caught fire.

It looked like a Smart Car or similar ilk. I haven't heard any more in the news, however. I really wonder if these cars are currently, "unsafe at any speed".

I suppose it could have just had the rear crushed in so far to make it look like a Smart Car. But that seems unlikely.