Recharging drone battery burns down (ahem!) a Fire Station

[KurtpH]

Recharging Drone Batteries Burns Fire Department to the Ground - Public Safety Flight

Over the years, I’ve written about the safety concerns surrounding the batteries we use for drones in public safety. A department shared their story and experience with me that should open your eyes if you continue to downplay the giant risks of charging your drone batteries. To show you I’m...

psflight.org

 

[BigAl07]

that's why we give our batteries such extreme care and scrutiny.

 

[AZDave]

The entire world is trying to increase energy density for laptops, phones, drones, cars ... even homes ... and we're past the point where energy density can create a fire. The even higher energy density we are about to see with some of the emerging technolgies is literally the definition of a bomb. That level of energy density is inevitable as we strive for broader and more effective applications of electricity, and the only thing preventing explosions will be the engineering that goes into the failsafe mechanisms.

But the potential will always be there ... you can't escape physics.

 

[CorralesDan]

Thanks for sharing. Always a good reminder.

 

[DougMcC]

Important consideration, yet our entire society has created/evolved a complex infrastructure and transportation system creating, distributing and then controlling the oxidation of GASOLINE. Now that is a very energy dense material! Six pounds of gasoline can move 2 tons down a highway for 20 miles! That’s dense energy.

 

[cgmaxed]

The entire world is trying to increase energy density for laptops, phones, drones, cars ... even homes ... and we're past the point where energy density can create a fire. The even higher energy density we are about to see with some of the emerging technolgies is literally the definition of a bomb. That level of energy density is inevitable as we strive for broader and more effective applications of electricity, and the only thing preventing explosions will be the engineering that goes into the failsafe mechanisms.

But the potential will always be there ... you can't escape physics.

Remember when, the Ford Pinto, had a tendency for gas tank rupture when rear ended? Twenty-seven people died in Pinto fires and countless others suffered serious burns.

 

[blubyyou]

Recharging Drone Batteries Burns Fire Department to the Ground - Public Safety Flight

Over the years, I’ve written about the safety concerns surrounding the batteries we use for drones in public safety. A department shared their story and experience with me that should open your eyes if you continue to downplay the giant risks of charging your drone batteries. To show you I’m...

psflight.org

The question I have is "how could this have been prevented"? No one is going to sit in front of charging batteries for a couple of hours watching to see if they start to smolder. So, what is the answer?

 

[tlswift58]

The question I have is "how could this have been prevented"? No one is going to sit in front of charging batteries for a couple of hours watching to see if they start to smolder. So, what is the answer?

My batteries are charged in open view when charging. That should help anyone who's batteries may go up in smoke.

Had these batteries been charged say in a FD kitchen or other common area in plain view - it may have been caught earlier. I'd never charge a Li Battery in an enclosed space.

 

[hiflyer201]

another interesting article

Crossing the line from firefighter to arsonist

Examining six possible reasons fire service members move from firefighters to fire-setters

www.firerescue1.com

 

[bcfd29]

The question I have is "how could this have been prevented"? No one is going to sit in front of charging batteries for a couple of hours watching to see if they start to smolder. So, what is the answer?

DO NOT charge your batteries and leave them unattended. Place them on non combustible surfaces and in battery containment bags so that IF they fail when they off gas they can not be propelled throughout the space. When these batteries do fail they emit energetic gases that are capable of propelling them throughout a room essentially spreading the fire.

INSPECT your batteries before and after use, failures usually do not JUST HAPPEN, usually they provide warnings such as deformation of the case, discoloration, unusual smell, excessively hot to the touch.

More to follow:

 

[Jagerbomb52]

Yup watch out for those Q500 batteries. Seen lots of them go up in smoke.

 

[AZDave]

The question I have is "how could this have been prevented"? No one is going to sit in front of charging batteries for a couple of hours watching to see if they start to smolder. So, what is the answer?

I used to be a manager in the semiconductor industry and one of the devices we made was widely used as a charge/discharge current limiter of lithium batteries. That kind of control helps against abuse of the battery but doesn't prevent an internal fault. Early lithium battery designs had plates that could warp and short out, causing catastrophic failure. Modern designs are better for that but not perfect. Most research I've seen into new battery technology involves not only higher energy density, but also materials that won't warp ... or plate separators that prevent shorts.

 

[Ty Pilot]

The question I have is "how could this have been prevented"? No one is going to sit in front of charging batteries for a couple of hours watching to see if they start to smolder. So, what is the answer?

I was approached three years ago by our local Battalion Chief in regards to implementing a drone program into the few stations that comprise our local fire department. I was asked to give a presentation and demonstration to the other chiefs, as well as other members of the FD.

As it turns out they had gotten a preliminary budget to explore the possibility and contacted a firm out Georgia which in turn came and put fourth a bid. Because of my relationship with one of the Lieutenants, I was given the opportunity to make advise and a proposal.

I will try to keep this short. After seeing the proposal from the Georgia firm which included a hardware list, as well as two (2) days training and the specifics of that training - needles to say I was shocked. There was absolutely no addressing of the problem as seen here - how do you make a UA ready 24 hours a day - 7 days a week?

I built my presentation around this aspect. First I explained the facts about LiPo's in enough detail so they would understand that they could NOT simply charge like a cell phone and expect to have operational readiness. At this point in my presentation I began to see eyes glaze over.

Long story short, our FD still has no drone program because the cost to train the entire fire department as well as the flight crews was a bridge too far as far as the city council was concerned. They were prepared to pay about a 4000% increase on the cost of the hardware of course but not put in the work of getting either a COA or 107 certified pilots in the FD as well as implementing a training course for the entire FD.

I suspect there will be more cases like, or similar to this incident in the coming years.

 

[AZDave]

Important consideration, yet our entire society has created/evolved a complex infrastructure and transportation system creating, distributing and then controlling the oxidation of GASOLINE. Now that is a very energy dense material! Six pounds of gasoline can move 2 tons down a highway for 20 miles! That’s dense energy.

All of that is certainly true (also for natural gas and propane), but even so failures (fires, explosions, etc) do occur. They just don't get quite the broad media coverage of a Tesla that catches fire ... or a drone battery that burns down a fire station.

And one difference is that nobody ever tries to recharge gasoline.

 

[cgmaxed]

All of that is certainly true (also for natural gas and propane), but even so failures (fires, explosions, etc) do occur. They just don't get quite the broad media coverage of a Tesla that catches fire ... or a drone battery that burns down a fire station.

And one difference is that nobody ever tries to recharge gasoline.

But they do refill their tanks. Static electricity can be a B. As exemplified by this guy filling his tank. This happens infrequently, but it happens often enough.

 

[cgmaxed]

I too leave my LIPO batteries in an open area near a smoke alarm. I charge them on a glass table with a tile floor.

 

[trwalp]

Will charging bags prevent this? How about a Bat-Safe?

 

[eEridani]

What no smoke and fire alarms allowed in a Fire Station?

 

[br14nh]

Will charging bags prevent this? How about a Bat-Safe?

I don't trust the bags as I don't believe any of them are robust enough.

I use a Bat-Safe box. When the last Covid lockdown prevented my buying another one (couldn't get them into Aus from anywhere at that stage) I bought some ammo cases and a steel toolbox and modified them to serve the same purpose - holes drilled in the lids with fibreglass matting filters and gyprock lining, they may not quite be up to Bat-Safe specs but way better than having nothing. I use them to charge all my LiPo batteries and store the RC ones as they will at least contain the heat from any fire enough to prevent it spreading. I also still monitor whenever charging.

 

[maelstrom]

I use a Bat-Safe box.

How do these boxes and bags allow the heat generated during charging to be dissipated? Many lithium battery fires have been as a result of thermal runaway rather than internal shorting.