Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) contain more energy per unit of weight than conventional batteries, which contributes to their success but also creates safety concerns. The same properties that result in high-energy density also pose potential hazards if
the energy is released at a fast, uncontrolled rate. Therefore, safety is of great interest to the industry, resulting in areas of intense research. Symposium 1: Battery Safety: Innovations to Improve Lithium Battery Safety from Cell to Systems addresses
innovations and technologies that improve safety, reliability and degradation management of LIBs.
Final Agenda
Thursday, March 24
7:30 am Symposium* Registration and Morning Coffee
8:00 Organizer’s Opening Remarks
Mary Ann Brown, Executive Director, Conferences, Cambridge EnerTech
8:05 Chairperson’s Opening Remarks
Judith Jeevarajan, Ph.D., Research Director, Electrochemical Safety, Underwriters Laboratories, Inc.
8:10 FEATURED PRESENTATION: Li-Ion Battery Safety Technologies and Their Implementation
Brian Barnett, Ph.D., Vice President, TIAX/CAMX Power
Under suitable triggers/abuses, Li-ion cells can experience thermal runaway, i.e., a rapid increase in cell temperature accompanied by venting, vent-with-flame, ejection of cell parts, fire and explosion. Our investigations of these types of triggers
reveals very different underlying physics and mechanisms, requiring very different approaches to prevent safety incidents due to each cause. This presentation highlights specific means to enhance safety with respect to each trigger.
8:40 All Tests and Standards Are Not Created Equal –
Even if They Have the Same Name!
Cindy Millsaps, President & CEO, Energy Assurance LLC
We are constantly asked what are the overlaps between the tests in various standards? Do we really have to re-test separate batteries for Overcharge and Short Circuit across standards? Can’t we reuse data? Unfortunately, in the world of non-harmonized
standards, this doesn’t work. We provide an in-depth look at the differences between commonly named tests across test standards for small format batteries used in portable devices.
9:10 Enhanced Battery Safety by Applying Embedded Photonic Sensors
Antonio Nedjalkov, Dipl.-Ing., Research Associate, Department for Fiber Optical Sensor Systems, Heinrich Hertz Institute, Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft
In this presentation, the application of fiber optical sensors for enhanced battery safety is presented. Simultaneously monitoring temperature and volume expansion of the battery cell allows accurate estimation of SOH and SOC. Failure and malfunction
such as overcharging, gassing and thermal runaway can also be predicted by such a monitoring system as well as battery aging effects.
9:40 Coffee Break with Poster Viewing
10:10 Safe Lithium-Ion Battery
Designs for Use, Transportation and Second Use
Judith Jeevarajan, Ph.D., Research Director, Electrochemical Safety, Underwriters Laboratories, Inc.
The presentation includes recommended safe designs for high-voltage, high-capacity battery designs that are becoming more common in use today. The presentation also includes recommendations on determining health of lithium-ion battery modules before second-life
usage.
10:40 Single-Point Probes for Lithium-Ion Battery Fault Detection and Temperature Monitoring
Corey T. Love, Ph.D., Materials Research Engineer, Alternative Energy Section, Chemistry Division, U.S. Naval Research Laboratory
State-of-health (SOH) of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) is a measure of the stability of the internal chemistry, electrochemistry and mechanical components. We present an impedance-based strategy which improves LIB safety two-fold: (1) as a single-point
probe of LIB SOH for internal fault detection to mitigate a full failure event and (2) as an online monitor of internal temperature to warn of rapid cell heating prior to thermal runaway.
11:10
Addressing the Safety Issues Related to Air Transportation of Lithium-Ion Batteries with Effective Engineered Thermal Management Solutions
Richard Clark, Strategic Business Development Specialist, Morgan Advanced Materials
The demand for high energy density lithium-ion batteries is increasing dramatically with the growth of applications such as electric vehicles, grid storage, electric bikes and uninterrupted power systems. With the majority of manufacturing distant from
the point of use, air is and will continue to be a major and in some cases only practical means to transport the batteries. It is of fundamental importance to the industry that effective solutions be implemented to protect the aircraft, crew and passengers
from the consequences of catastrophic thermal events. Morgan Advanced Materials as a global leader in fire protection systems is developing effective solutions to address these challenges. This presentation will provide details of the current legislation
and information about how Morgan is helping the lithium-ion battery and air transportation industries in this critically important domain.
11:40 Enjoy Lunch on Your Own
1:20 pm Chairperson’s Remarks
Brian Barnett, Ph.D., Vice President, TIAX/CAMX Power
1:25 NREL Multiphysics Modeling Tools for Designing Safer Li-Ion Batteries
Ahmad A. Pesaran, Ph.D., Manager, Energy Storage Group, Transportation and Hydrogen System Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL)
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory has developed a portfolio of multiphysics modeling tools to aid battery designers to better understand the response of lithium-ion batteries to abusive conditions. We discuss this portfolio, which includes coupled
electrical, thermal, chemical, electrochemical and mechanical modeling. These models can simulate the response of a cell to overheating, overcharge, mechanical deformation, nail penetration and internal short circuit. Cell-to-cell thermal propagation
modeling will be discussed.
1:55 Li-Ion Battery Characterization across Space and Time: Imaging Microstructure in 2D, 3D and 4D
Jeff Gelb, Senior Applications Development Engineer, Carl Zeiss X-ray Microscopy
For modern battery researchers, image-based studies can be very beneficial. Here, we present the latest results in using light-, electron-, and X-ray microscopy to characterize a commercial 18650 battery cell across multiple length scales. We will show
some recent work in characterizing defect nucleation and propagation as a function of charge cycling, revealing the microstructure associated with various cycling rates and corresponding capacity fades.
2:25 Effects of Cell Reversal on Li-Ion Batteries
E. Joseph Nemanick, Ph.D., Senior Member, Technical Staff, Energy Technology Department, The Aerospace Corporation
Selected Li-ion cells were purposely put into a reversal condition to determine the effect on the cells’ operating temperature, electrical characteristics, capacity and cyclability. Destructive physical analysis (DPA) of reversed cells will also
be presented.
2:55 Refreshment Break with Poster Viewing
3:30 Experiments and Simulations for Battery Safety
Sergiy Kalnaus, Ph.D., Research Scientist, Computational Engineering and Energy Sciences, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL)
The results from the integrated computational and experimental program targeting investigation of safety of Li-ion batteries will be presented. Novel manufacturing approaches towards improvement of safety under external impact will be discussed. Computational
modeling was performed with ORNL developed Virtual Integrated Battery Environment (VIBE), which allows coupling between different physics characteristic of battery operation (electrochemistry, thermal transport, mechanics). Predictive capabilities
as well as validation studies will be shown.
4:00 From Safe Batteries to Safe Systems
Todd Vanyo, Senior Systems Engineer, Texas Instruments
Making a safe system requires more than just a safer battery. From improved measurement accuracy to active cell balancing, this talk highlights a number of techniques that can be implemented in the system to ensure that overall safety goals are reached.
4:30 Mesoscale Implications in Lithium-Ion Battery Thermal Behavior
Chien-Fan Chen, Energy Storage Lead, Energy and Transport Sciences Laboratory, Mechanical Engineering, Texas A&M University
A critical imperative in recent years has been on accelerating innovation toward improved safety, performance and life of the lithium-ion battery (LIB), a leading candidate for electric drive vehicles. LIB electrodes include coupled physicochemical
processes encompassing electronic/ionic/diffusive transport, electrochemical reaction, heat generation and diffusion induced stress. This talk seeks to define the mesoscale implications of the underlying physicochemical interactions on the lithium-ion
battery thermal behavior and safety.
5:00 Close of Symposium & Close of International Battery Seminar & Exhibit