FSRI EV Fire Experiments: What We’re Learning About Battery Fires

I take you behind the scenes of experiments led by the @FireSafetyResearchInstitute (FSRI), part of UL Research Institutes, evaluating the effectiveness of water suppression on electric vehicle (EV) fires. These experiments are part of FSRI’s Fire Safety of Batteries and Electric Vehicles research project. We’ll discuss everything from the experimental setup and fire suppression techniques to my own observations and insights as one of the 17 technical panel members guiding this project. This research is vital for firefighters, first responders, and anyone concerned about the safety of EVs as they become more prevalent on our roads.

I hope that the data can be quickly published and shared with all firefighters! And develop to fight these fires more effectively. I also hope that automotive manufacturers will learn from these experiments and make the vehicles safer and develop ways to assist firefighters in the future.

[StevePhillips]

I’m glad that this research is being done. It will be helpful for fire fighters and the public.

One of the scariest things about EVs and even hybrids (HEVs) is the danger of being exposed to high voltage. Knowing where you can cut to get someone out of a wrecked car completely changes when high voltage is in the mix.

So thank you again, this kind of awareness can save lives.

[paultranchell]

As a retired safety professional and industrial hygienist, I worked with emergency responders to help keep them safe. I'm looking forward to the exposure data and how well the turnout gear can protect firefighters as well as establishing appropriate exclusion zones.
Thank you for the post.

[tyroncalta]

Blown away that this research is just starting now. All of this will be a reference material for decades to come.

[RC-wugm]

I hope the study is able to provide battery cell isolation design recommendations and improved fire suppression techniques to prevent fire propagation to neighboring cell packs.

On another note, with the California wildfires, you should do a special presentation on simple methods to fire harden your house from wildfires and prevent neighboring fires from igniting your house.

[kentslocum]

This is amazing and necessary work! This is the kind of research that vehicle manufacturers should be doing.

[josephrizzoiii]

Respect to you and those working to expose this. But whatever happened to these tests being done BEFORE the product is released to the public?

[djitommy]

Makes sense why this vid took a bit to get out, tons of good info.

Nice job Patrick you guys are gathering very valuable information that I’m sure will be greatly appreciated by departments around the country.

[Archangelm]

QQ: Are you doing any experiments using kinetic force on the battery pack (i.e. smacking it hard or piercing it forcefully) as an ignition method? Judging purely from this channel and other incidental reports I've seen, having the pack struck forcefully or pierced during an accident seems to be one of the two common ways EV fires start. (The other being ignition during charging, which I don't claim to really understand.)

In any case, thanks to everyone involved for their hard work! ❤

[Solargo]

This much needed research is long overdue.

[brothertheo]

As a test engineer I have to say these experiments were very well done. I am impressed with the amount of instrumentation applied. Question: if battery packs had a stand pipe arrangement where you could inject water or chemical directly into the pack would it help?

[erikflickwir]

Really interesting! I'm looking forward to your report on the Moss Landing fire (there have several at this location).

[lindastevens]

thank you
I send your post out on my FB and twitter in hope normal people read their cars safety manual and know to exit immediately and call for help .
thank you for keeping our firefighters informed so they can help

[deniswauchope]

Valuable work, I'm glad you're doing it- and I'm looking forward to your conclusions. I still reckon EVs are a poor alternative to ICE vehicles, and are far more dangerous, but let's see some data!

[dave]

This is the type of research that should have been done before the first lithium powered EV was allowed on the road.

[SolAce-nwhf]

It would be interesting to see how different battery cell chemistries and form factors react to mechanical and thermal event and how hard or easy they are to extinguish. From what I have seen up until now the prismatic cells (LiFePO4) are pretty tough compared to pouch cells and cylindrical batteries (often NMC), but it would be nice to see some objective tests.

[georgepelton]

Great job designing and conducting these tests. This is valuable R&D work, by a knowledgeable and experienced team, including Munro, UL, StacheD, and others. Thanks for your participation and informative video.

[charlesnash]

Fascinating, thank you for all you do!

[chrisyoungs]

This is so fascinating to me. I am not a firefighter but I see the damage fire does to homes on a regular basis because I put homes back together for families. I am an insurance restoration contractor. I have been following your channel for a while now and the information you share is very interesting. I have had two confirmed fires caused by batteries. One was a hover board that ignited in a living room of a split level home and it did 260K worth of damage and the other was a Bluetooth speaker that caught fire on a dresser and caused 275K worth of damage. As you can imagine I speak to my family and friends about the dangers of these batteries and to be very careful and not leave them unattended. Thank you for sharing your findings with us.Be Safe!

[rosswagner]

Thank you Pat for sharing this. It is extremely interesting and informative. Thank you also for participating firsthand in this to be able to share this information.