Simpson - 2020 - Energy Storage Fire Safety Lessons From Real-World Systems Energy Storage at EPRI-annotated

Energy Storage
Fire Safety
Lessons from Real-world Systems
Mike Simpson
Sr. Technical Leader
MSimpson@EPRI.com
Cedric Christensen
EPRI Independent Consultant
Cedric.Christensen@gmail.com
13 October 2020
www.epri.com © 2020 Electric Power Research Institute, Inc. All rights reserved.
Energy Storage at EPRI
Advance integration and use of safe, reliable, cost-
MISSION effective and environmentally responsible energy
storage, distributed generation, and microgrids.
Analysis Technology Implementation and Operations
Valuation and Grid Impacts Evaluation, Testing, Demonstration Project Lifecycle and Controls
ISO μGRID
DMS DERMS HEMS
EMS CONTROLLER
ES Meter
Points
Energy Site/Plant
Storage Controller
ESS Ecosystem
Asset Management Environmental Issues Industry Engagement

Safety and Reliability Analyzing Impacts and Sustainability Advancing Common Approaches
2 www.epri.com © 2020 Electric Power Research Institute, Inc. All rights reserved.
Scope of safety permeates every subsystem, cell-to-city,
and each stage of life, design-to-disposal.
The Challenges
▪ Lack of codes and standards adoption
▪ Widespread misinformation about fire
safety hazards
▪ Absence of benchmarks for comparison
between technologies and products
▪ Disparate perspectives of diverse
stakeholders
Early Market Fire Failures Affected > 1% Installed Capacity
▪ Fires affected over 180 MW of energy storage systems through
2019, with a reported global deployment of 17.9 GW (WoodMac)
Site of Battery Fire in Belgium Site of Battery Fire in South Korea

(Source: GreenTechMedia) (Source: Korea Times)
… and new incidents continue to arise …

Recent Lithium Ion Energy Storage System Fires
Capacity Capacity
Location Application Event Date System Age (yr) Source
(MWh) (MW)
US, HI, Kuhuku 10.0 15.0 Wind Integration 4/22/2011 1.0 Hawaii Free Press
Japan, Ibaraki Prefecture unknown unknown unknown 9/21/2011 unknown NGK
US, WA, Port Angeles unknown unknown Energy Shifting 7/3/2013 unknown Peninsula Daily News
US, WI, Franklin, S&C unknown unknown unknown 8/10/2016 0.0 S&C
Korea 1.5 unknown Wind Integration 8/2/2017 0.0 MOTIE Investigation, June 2019
Belgium, Engie unknown 6.0 Frequency Regulation 11/11/2017 unknown GTM
Korea 8.6 unknown Frequency Regulation 5/2/2018 1.8 MOTIE Investigation, June 2019
Korea 19.0 unknown Solar Integration 6/15/2018 0.5 MOTIE Investigation, June 2019
Korea 18.0 unknown Demand Charge Mgmt 7/28/2018 0.0 MOTIE Investigation, June 2019
33 Known Incidents
Korea 17.7 unknown Frequency Regulation 10/18/2018 2.6 MOTIE Investigation, June 2019
US, OR, Powin unknown unknown n/a 4/11/2019 unknown The Oregonian
US, AZ, APS 2.0 2.0 Volt Reg., PQ, Solar int. 4/19/2019 2.0 APS
Norway, Sydnes 2.0 unknown Ship Hybrid Drive 10/10/2019 <1 Norwegian Maritime Authority
Korea, Haenam 1.8 unknown Solar Integration 5/27/2020 unknown E2News.com
UK, Liverpool 10.0 20.0 Frequency Regulation 9/15/2020 1 .5 Energy Storage News
Self-perpetuating Reactions
A battery failure can trigger a
heat-generating chemical
reaction
➢Release of flammable,
explosive gases accelerates
➢ Fire can propagate, or
➢ Gases can build to explosive
atmosphere
➢Latent heat can reignite fire
hours after extinguishment
Chain of Events involved in Thermal Runaway
Source: Ruiz, V., Pfrang, A.; “JRC exploratory research: Safer Li-ion batteries by
preventing thermal propagation”, Publications Office of the European Union , 31
Oct 2018.
What has the ESS industry learned?
EVENTS LESSONS HAZARD IDENTIFICATION
• Well-documented incidents with cell
phones and laptops high-temperature fires,
2000s Cell Level • Characterization: public data from DOE,
NASA, DNVGL, etc. off-gas constituents,
Failures • Early transport and management chemistry / energy density thresholds
guidance
• EV studies and early deployment

failures multi-module failure intensity,
Propagation • NFPA 855, UL 9540
2010s water suppression necessity,
Hazards • UL 9540A and FPRF tests health warnings
• Integration Guidance
• Large failure event forensics utility-scale ESS

• First responder
2020 Explosions coordination deflagration,
• System-level Test life safety threat
Lessons Learned
Prevention Mitigation
▪ Maintaining strict operational limits via ▪ Clean agent fire suppression (alone) is often
SOFTWARE DESIGN &
robust Battery Management Systems (BMS)
HAZARD IDENTIFICATION &
incapable of stopping propagating thermal
VALIDATION
can inhibit thermal runaway runawayTRADEOFF STUDIES
▪ Thermal QUALITY
runaway mayASSURANCE
be inevitable&at a cell ▪ Cascading thermal runaway generates large
PROJECT SITING &
level due to cell defects,
VENDOR aging
COORDINATION amounts of heat – continuous water
▪ Propagation depends on many factors, such RESOURCE
suppression PLANNING
may be the best option to abate
SUBSYSTEM
as chemistry, INTEGRATION
cell packaging, thermal ▪ Explosive off-gases can build quickly –
SYSTEM ENVELOPE
resistance of the module ventilation is essential to avoid deflagration
▪ Monitoring of voltage, current, temperature, ▪ Coordination, planning, and communications
DATA
and gasesACQUISITION & TRENDING
may provide failure pre-conditions
RESPONSE PROCEDURES &
before, during, and post event can save lives
andINFORMATION
equipment SHARING
Many mitigation opportunities exist…
Multi-disciplinary vendor,
operator, & site coordination
Ventilation, First responder

Periodic, continued updates and first responder coordination
suppression, thermal coordination and
and training
barriers, detection training
Rack/string spacing Material handling, transport, and disposal procedures and protective equipment
and physical config
Cell, module design

and packaging Monitoring, preventative maintenance, alarm management
Understanding Hazard Pathways
Types of Hazards: Download EPRI’s Energy
Storage Reference Fire Hazard
▪ Fire Mitigation Analysis at
Emerging standards address safety, but https://www.epri.com/esic
▪ Chemical
technology advances faster than standards
▪ Stranded Energy
▪ Electrical
▪ Physical
Source: CGErisk.com
System Safety Depends Upon Proper Planning and Understanding

ESS Reference Fire Hazard Mitigation Analysis
Hazard Consequences
Threats
Barriers
https://www.epri.com/research/products/000000003002017136
Mitigation Measures
Measures Examples
sizing/arrangement, disconnect
Design Considerations placement
Active Hardware relays, exhaust ventilation
Passive Hardware fuses, circuit breakers, dead fronts
Continuous Hardware monitoring, SCADA

FUEL
combustion triangle
procedures, safe operating plans,
Human Factors emergency action plan
inherent stability, propagation

System Property resistance
EPRI Fire Prevention and Mitigation Project
Expert Collaboration
Assemble external expert advisory Strategic Roadmap
committee to collaborate with project Consolidate research and
participants and identify key knowledge lessons learned.
gaps. Coordinate outputs with
industry via workshop and
Top-Down report. Establish safety
roadmap prioritizing test and Phase
Bottoms-Up
evaluation plans. II
1. Prioritized Testing
Site-Specific Hazard Assessment 2. Collaboration
Apply ESIC reference battery storage fire hazard 3. Knowledge Transfer and
analysis to specific projects. Evaluate potential
threats, consequences, and mitigations. Assess Communication
publicly-available incidents. 4. Interim Safety Guidance
Publicly Available ESIC Resources
A Guide to ESIC ▪
A forum advancing the integration of energy storage
▪ Energy Storage Implementation Guide
systems through open, technical collaboration
▪ Energy Storage Cost Template and Tool
ESIC Stakeholders
▪ Energy Storage Modeling Bibliography
▪ Energy Storage Technical Specification Template
▪ Energy Storage Test Manual
▪ Energy Storage Commissioning Guide
▪ Energy Storage Safety Guidelines
▪ Energy Storage Reference Fire Hazard Mitigation Analysis
▪ Energy Storage Safety Incident Reporting and Gathering List
▪ Energy Storage Request for Proposal Guide
▪ Common Functions for Smart Inverters V4
▪ StorageVET and Supporting Documentation
Email esic@epri.com to join the 2000+ ▪ Electrical Energy Storage Data Guidelines
industry collaborators ▪ Available at www.epri.com/esic
Interested in learning more?
▪ EPRI’s Energy Storage Fire Prevention and
Mitigation Project
– accepting advisory committee members and
sites to evaluate
▪ Energy Storage Integration Council
– Participation is free: www.epri.com/esic
– Safety task force currently discussing alarm
management
▪ Contact with other questions or feedback:
Mike Simpson
MSimpson@EPRI.com
Together…Shaping the Future of Electricity

Simpson - 2020 - Energy Storage Fire Safety Lessons From Real-World Systems Energy Storage at EPRI-annotated

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Simpson - 2020 - Energy Storage Fire Safety Lessons From Real-World Systems Energy Storage at EPRI-annotated

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Energy Storage

Asset Management Environmental Issues Industry Engagement

Site of Battery Fire in Belgium Site of Battery Fire in South Korea

… and new incidents continue to arise …

• EV studies and early deployment

• Large failure event forensics utility-scale ESS

Ventilation, First responder

Cell, module design

System Safety Depends Upon Proper Planning and Understanding

Active Hardware relays, exhaust ventilation

Passive Hardware fuses, circuit breakers, dead fronts

Continuous Hardware monitoring, SCADA

inherent stability, propagation

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