Toxic gases released during the burning of Lithium-ion batteries (CO and CO2) | Lithium-ion battery a clean future? Similar to hydrogen fluoride (HF), carbon monoxide (CO) and carbon dioxide (CO2) are common toxic gases that are released in the burning of LIB (Peng et al., 2020 ).
Our quantitative study of the emission gases from Li-ion battery fires covers a wide range of battery types. We found that commercial lithium-ion batteries can emit considerable amounts of HF during a fire and that the emission rates vary for different types of batteries and SOC levels.
Due to lithium-ion batteries generating their own oxygen during thermal runaway, it is worth noting that lithium-ion battery fires or a burning lithium ion battery can be very difficult to control. For this reason, it is worth understanding how lithium-ion fires can be controlled should a fire scenario happen.
Due to the self-sustaining process of thermal runaway, Lithium-ion battery fires are also difficult to quell. Bigger batteries such as those used in electric vehicles may reignite hours or even days after the event, even after being cooled. Source: Firechief® Global
In the case of fires involving large arrays of lithium-ion battery cells, like those used in electric vehicles, lithium-ion battery fires are normally only controlled and extinguished when the fire and rescue service deliver a large amount of water to the burning materials for a significant amount of time.
Lithium-ion battery fires generate intense heat and considerable amounts of gas and smoke. Although the emission of toxic gases can be a larger threat than the heat, the knowledge of such emissions is limited.