What are battery storage fire safety initiatives?

These initiatives have included creating a battery storage fire safety roadmap, developing recommendations and leading practices for designing systems, and training and working with first responders responsible for putting out fires.

What is battery energy storage fire prevention & mitigation?

In 2019, EPRI began the Battery Energy Storage Fire Prevention and Mitigation – Phase I research project, convened a group of experts, and conducted a series of energy storage site surveys and industry workshops to identify critical research and development (R&D) needs regarding battery safety.

Do battery storage systems prevent fires?

As battery storage systems today overwhelmingly utilize lithium-ion technology, the industry must take steps to prevent and mitigate potential fires and preparing effective responses for the rare instances when they occur.

Are battery energy storage systems safe?

Owners of energy storage need to be sure that they can deploy systems safely. Over a recent 18-month period ending in early 2020, over two dozen large-scale battery energy storage sites around the world had experienced failures that resulted in destructive fires. In total, more than 180 MWh were involved in the fires.

Is gaseous protection effective in extinguishing a fire involving energy storage systems?

As of 2019, there is no evidence that gaseous protection is effective in extinguishing or controlling a fire involving energy storage systems. Gaseous protection systems may inert or interrupt the chemical reaction of the fire, but only for the duration of the hold time.

Are grid-scale battery energy storage systems safe?

Despite widely known hazards and safety design of grid-scale battery energy storage systems, there is a lack of established risk management schemes and models as compared to the chemical, aviation, nuclear and the petroleum industry.