Spare lithium-ion batteries must not be placed inside check-in luggage, whereas electronic devices must be turned off before checking in, and there are also a restriction to the number of handheld devices allows when boarding, in order to avoid short circuit and fire from lithium-ion batteries or portable batteries that would trigger flight risks. Global safety certification company UL has now released a new standard targeted at battery fire containment in the hope of strengthening the safety management on lithium batteries on air transportation.

According to the statistics of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), there were 310 incidents between 2006 and March 2021 related to lithium-ion batteries in mid-air or airports, of which 45 were recorded in 2019, and 37 were record during 2020 despite the drastic reduction in flights owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. These incidents include overheating electronic cigarettes in carry-on luggage, spontaneous combustion in smartphone batteries, and overheating earbuds while charging.

There is an increasing number of consumer electronics configured with lithium-ion batteries, and airline companies have started to equip fire-proof bags, which must be operated by professionally trained airline staffs, so as to avoid impacting the flight safety. However, UL has pointed out that the performance of battery fire containment products is all self-claimed without the review, inspection, or certification of third-party institutions, and the FAA is also lacking relevant standards and review mechanisms.

Hence, UL has released the first safety and availability certification service targeted at in-flight battery fire containment products designed for lithium batteries by adhering to the <ANSI/CAN/UL 5800 Standard for Safety for Battery Fire Containment Products> announced in December 2020 and gathering stakeholders, including airline companies, transportation companies, government agencies, and fire-proof production developers.

The certification consists of three testing requirements, and will evaluate the level of fire, high temperature, smoke, or debris that may be derived when the product suppresses or decelerates the fire generated by the battery.

Kevin Faltin, UL Building Materials and Systems Engineering Director, commented that the in-flight battery fire containment products have been extensively adopted by airline companies, and the third-party safety certification service launched by UL that is targeted at battery fire containment products is able to assist product suppliers in providing high quality and performance commodities that conform to the industrial safety standards.

 (Cover photo source: pixabay)