Electric Vehicle Related Fire

Hazards
By,
Govind KP
Contents
● Introduction to electric vehicles and chargers
● Electric vehicle architecture
● Fire hazard in electric vehicles
● Safety precautions and measures

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Contents (contd)
● Extrication
● Fire suppression
● Creating public awareness

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Introduction to electric vehicles
Electric vehicle history
● 1/3rd of all vehicles in 1900’s were electric vehicles(EV).
● Had relatively small batteries and weak motors.
● Used primarily in the city.
● IC engines were complex and expensive at that time.

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Electric vehicle history (contd)
● Electric taxi from 1900.

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Electric vehicle history (contd)
● Affordable and reliable IC cars led to downfall of EVs in the
1900’s.
● Ford Model T became the bestselling car of the century.

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Electric vehicles in present day
● Fossils fuels are getting depleted.
● Global warming and environmental pollution is on the rise.
● Fossil fuel price is increasing.
● Thus the need for an alternative sustainable mobility arises.

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Electric vehicles in present day (contd)
● Widespread availability of electricity.
● Advancements in battery manufacturing led to cheaper
production of high capacity Lithium ion batteries.
● With the help of on board control circuits, efficient and safe
control of batteries was possible.

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Electric vehicles in present day (contd)
● Renewable production of electricity was possible through
solar, windmills and other methods.
● Production cost of electricity was low when compared to fossil
fuels.
● Reduced carbon footprint and efficient transmission.

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Electric vehicles in present day (contd)
● Sales of EVs began to rise year over year.
● 2019 onwards High voltage EVs began to be produced in India.
● Government and private agencies developed charging
infrastructure.

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Electric vehicles in present day (contd)

● Some of 4wheel EVs being sold in India.

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Electric vehicles in present day (contd)

● Some of 2wheel EVs being sold in India.

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Comparison with IC vehicles
● Lesser moving parts and thus lower maintenance than IC
vehicles.
● Lower running costs due to electricity being cheaper than
fossil fuels.
● Lower NVH(Noise, Vibration, Harmonics) levels.

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Comparison with IC vehicles (contd)
● Better pick up and smoother ride.
● Limited range due to fixed battery capacity.
● Dependent on charger availability.
● Higher initial cost.

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Economical aspects of owning EVs
● Government provided incentives.
● Tax cut on loan interest.
● Lower electricity tariff for charging EVs.
● Economical than IC vehicles in the long run.

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Introduction to EV charging
Levels of EV Charging
● Level 1-
● Consists of charging an EV at any household
power plug socket.
● Can plug the charger without adding extra
wiring.

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Levels of EV Charging (contd)
● Level 2-
● Requires a 3 phase supply.
● A separate wiring circuit is done from the supply.
● The charger is fixed.
● Can be installed at home or commercial locations.

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Levels of EV Charging (contd)
● Level 3-
● DC fast charging.
● High power AC is converted to DC and fed directly
into the battery.
● Requires expensive supply equipment.

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EV architecture
EV architecture
● EV drivetrain consists of 3 major
components-
● Battery.
● Power electronic unit.
● Motor.

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EV battery
● High voltage battery stores the energy in an EV in the form of
DC.
● Batteries are usually mounted on the floor pan of the car and
in storage compartment area for scooters.

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EV battery (contd)
● Mostly two types of batteries are used. NMC and LFP.
● Nickel Manganese Cobalt(NMC) batteries offer higher energy
density but are relatively unstable than LFP.
● Lithium iron Phosphate(LFP) batteries have relatively lower
energy density but are more stable.

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EV battery (contd)

● EV Batteries for cars and scooters respectively.

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EV battery (contd)

● EV Batteries for cars and scooters respectively.

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Power Electronic Unit
● Power electronic unit consists of power distribution unit(PDU)
and battery management system(BMS).
● BMS controls the safe charging and discharging of the HV
battery.
● PDU controls the power given to the motor necessarily.

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Power Electronic Unit (contd)
● Photo of a high voltage
power distribution unit.
● Typically located inside the
bonnet.

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Motors
● Motors are either DC or AC.
● Motor is coupled with a transmission to power the wheels on
an EV.

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Fire hazard in EV
Fire Hazard in EV
● Fire hazard in EV can be categorised into 2 risk levels.
● Low risk components.
● High risk components.

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Fire hazard of low risk
● Just like any vehicle, EV contains objects that have a low fire
risk.
● These are seat cushions, interior plastic bits, rubber cladding
etc.
● These can be suppressed using conventional fire fighting
procedures.
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Fire hazard of high risk
● Due to consumer demand for more range in EVs,
manufacturers use high capacity batteries which is a potential
hazard.
● Also there are high voltage cables running through the car,
which transfers power from battery to PDU and then to motor.

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Fire hazard of high risk (contd)
● Fires rising from the short circuit of high voltage cables have to
be treated as electrical fires.
● Also there is a possibility of short circuit or insulation failure.
● These fires can be put out using suffocating agents (Class C fire
extinguisher).

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Battery fire hazard
● EV batteries are large lithium based batteries which consist of
thousands of individual cells stacked in various configurations.
● Lithium being an unstable metal, the battery has a risk of
catching fire when foriegn particles enter in into the bare cells.
● Lithium battery needs to be maintained at rated temperature.

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Thermal runaway
● Failure in lithium batteries can sometimes lead to excessive
build up to heat inside a cell.
● This eventually leads to rupture of the cells and hazardous
inflammable gases gets released into the environment.
● Other nearby cells also follow suit in same manner and a chain
reaction forms.
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Thermal runaway (contd)
● Building up fumes and gases start off as white smoke, then
colour deepens and finally battery pack goes up in flames.
● An ignited battery pack can’t be suppressed using
conventional fire fighting methods.
● The battery pack has the potential to continue fire for days.

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Thermal runaway (contd)

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Safety precautions and measures
Safe charging measures
● Inspect the household wiring before installing home chargers.
● Only use manufacturer rated supply equipment(chargers).
● Regularly inspect the chargers for loose contact, or for damge
on the connectors.
● Avoid charging removable batteries near flammable
substances or in closed spaces.
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Safe charging measures (contd)
● Ensure charger and it’s cables are away from water/moisture.
● When using an extension cables, use cables which have
sufficient current and power rating.
● Check regularly for insulation failures.
● For DC fast chargers, have the MCB switch in accessible
position.
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Precautions while using EVs
● Avoid parking in direct sun for prolonged duration, especially
in summers.
● Wait for few minutes for the battery to cool down before
charging at a fast charging station.
● For 4wheel EV’s try to park the car in shade while fast
charging.
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Precautions while using EVs (contd)
● When handling removable batteries in light EVs, make sure not
to dent or damage the battery.
● If the battery appears to be damaged, take it to the nearest
service centre.
● Avoid driving in waterlogged roads above vehicle’s water
wading capacity.
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Precautions while using EVs (contd)
● Inspect the battery by a professional, if a vehicle crash occurs.
● Avoid modifying the battery.
● Avoid overcharging.

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EV Extrication
Extrication
● Extrication is the process of removing a vehicle from around a
person who has been involved in a motor vehicle collision.
● When dealing with EVs certain additional factors have to be
considered with the vehicle.

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High Voltage Cut off
● In case the automatic cut off of the vehicle doesn’t work, first
responders will have to automatically cut off the high voltage
supply.
● Vehicles will have specific cut off points for this.

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High Voltage Cut off (contd)

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Battery isolator
● Battery isolator cuts off the supply to or
from the battery.
● It essentially isolates the battery with the
rest of the vehicle.

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Assessment of the fire
● Although an EV might be on fire, but the HV battery may not
be involved.
● In such cases regular methods can be used to put out the fire.
● Thermal imaging camera can be used to find out the hottest
points and to identify the source of the fire.

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Assessment of the fire (contd)
● Thermal imaging camera can be used to identify if the HV
battery is involved or not.
● While rescuing trapped passengers firefighters must be ready
with charged hoseline as there is risk of delayed fire.
● If the fire causes popping or sputtering and breathing
difficulties are observed, it may indicate hazardous gases.
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Challenges due to battery placement
● Large lithium batteries are located on the floor pan of the
vehicle to help with vehicle dynamics.
● Due to this access to the battery in case of a fire is limited.
● Special struts or stabilizers have to be used to make the
battery pack accessible for first responders.

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Battery placement

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Special struts for accessing battery

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Precaution while accessing battery
● No holes or damaged portions should be used to tilt or
stabilize the vehicle.
● Struts shouldn’t be applied on the battery but on a rigid part of
the chassis near the battery (rocker arm).
● Floor pan shouldn’t be punctured or cut as battery lies beneath
it.
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Fire suppression
Analyzing the battery pack
● First responders should analyze the accident site for possible
information.
● If the floor pan appears to be significantly damaged then there
is chance of battery pack getting impacted too.

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Analyzing the battery pack (contd)
● Battery packs are made fire resistant due to two main reasons.
● If there is a thermal runaway event inside of the box,
manufacturers want the fire to stay in the box to protect the
vehicle's occupants.
● If there is a fire outside of the vehicle, the goal is to keep the
battery cells from going into a thermal runaway event.
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Analyzing the battery pack (contd)
● Hence it’s difficult to extinguish the battery pack once it goes
up in flames.

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Fire fighting challenges
● Since Lithium ion battery pack is made up of chemicals, it can't
be treated as a regular vehicle fire or an electric fire.
● Since gases are produced due to thermal runaway inside the
battery itself, conventional suffocating agents will be of no use
and battery will re ignite again.
● Battery backs being fire resistant, are difficult to cool.
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Fire fighting methods for EVs
● After passengers are rescued safely, the second priority should
be to remove any flammable objects which may be near the
vehicle.
● The environment should be studied briefly and the scope of
letting the fire run out itself should be examined.

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Fire fighting methods (contd)
● Letting the fire run out on its own may not be practical always.
● So first the battery pack should be analyzed for possible
location of damage or thermal runaway.
● A thermal imaging camera can be used for this.
● After the secondary fires that have formed in the cabin have
been put out, focus should be on the battery pack.
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Fire fighting methods (contd)
● Since failed battery pack leads to excessive heat and then fire,
if the battery packed can be cooled, fire could be suppressed.
● Experimental studies shows that huge quantity of water will
be needed to be pumped onto the battery pack continuously.
● This quantity of water required can range from 10000 litres,
much higher in the case of heavy vehicles like E buses.
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Fire fighting methods (contd)
● After the vehicle is tilted using struts or stabilizers, check for
cracks or openings in the battery that may have happened
during the crash.
● They can be taken advantage of by focusing water to that area
which can effectively cool the battery.
● Sea water can’t be used for suppressing battery fires.
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Fire fighting methods (contd)
● No additional cracks should be made if none are present as it
can result in shorting out the batteries and even explosion.
● Even after fire has been suppressed, water should be
additionally be pumped to cool down the batteries.
● Thermal imaging cameras can be used to track battery
temperature.
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Post fire suppression measures
● The fire suppression procedure can go on for hours.
● And even after fire has been suppressed and battery cells have
been cooled down, the battery should be kept under close
observation.
● For small batteries (of scooters) its recommended to keep the
battery submerged in water.
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Post fire suppression measures (contd)
● While transporting the burnt vehicle or battery, fire fighting
team should escort the tow operators.
● The vehicle should be kept under observation for at least 72
hours.

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Suitable equipments
● Some dedicated equipment have been developed to fight EV
fires specifically.
● They include large submersible tanks, water pumping systems
etc.

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Suitable equipments (contd)
● Tanks designed to
hold cars.
● Prevents additional
chance of ignition.

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Suitable equipments (contd)
● Rosenbauer developed a dedicated EV fire extinguishing
system.
● It is a 2 part system, one which consists of a lance and water
hose which pierces the battery pack and water is fed directly
to the hot cells.
● Other part is a unit which fire fighter could operate remotely.
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Suitable equipments (contd)

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Creating public awareness
Safety of EV cars
● Though EVs can catch fire, the chance of it taking place is very
rare.
● The probability of EV catching fire is lesser than IC cars.
● Manufacturers incorporate multiple safety measures and fail
safes in EVs.

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Safety of EV cars (contd)
● Just like any other vehicle, if used properly EV can yield great
results too.
● Being a technology that’s new to consumers, they have to be
made aware of the precautions and safety measures.
● Seminars or sessions can be held for creating public awareness
on safe use of EVs.
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Safety of EV cars (contd)
● First responders contact no. can be displayed as stickers on
fast chargers.
● The pros of EVs outweigh its cons considerably.
● Environmental pollution as well as air pollution can be kerbed
by EVs.

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Thank you.
Contact
Govind KP

Mobile no: 8281764070

Email id: govindkaniyath@gmail.com

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