by Thom Zaremba, shareholder at Roetzel & Andress
Today’s word is “containment.” Contain what? Contain the toxic gases and extreme temperatures released by lithium-ion fires, that’s what! How? Fire-rated corridor construction, that’s how!
Over my last few blogs, I’ve chronicled the hows and whys of the dangers associated with the surprising rise in the number of lithium-ion batteries that now populate our built environment. We’ve seen that literally hundreds of lithium-ion powered devices are now with us daily in our offices and our homes. We’ve also seen what happens when they catch fire—they spew toxic, flammable gases into the air before they erupt into a jet of flames hot enough to melt metal.
What can we do to keep ourselves safe? Containment. Does the International Building Code (IBC) tell us how to contain an extremely hot fire spewing toxic and flammable gases before first responders can arrive? It does. Let’s go to the Code.
When the Code requires a corridor’s walls to be “fire-resistance” rated, that means that they must be constructed of “materials … that prevent or retards the passage of excessive heat, hot gases or flames ….” In short, if the exit access corridors that building occupants use to reach the safety of exits are fire-resistance rated, a lithium-ion fire in one location would be contained until occupants can safely exit and first responders are able to respond.
It’s important to note, especially when it comes to containing lithium-ion battery fires, that the Code specifically requires fire-resistance rated construction to restrict the passage of “hot gases.” Why is that so important? Because the “hot gases” released before and during lithium-ion fires are so toxic that even breathing in small amounts can cause serious injuries. Some of the dangerous gases released by these types of fires are hydrogen fluoride, carbon monoxide, hydrogen cyanide, methane, ethylene, and heavy metal smoke, including cobalt, nickel and manganese.
Hydrogen fluoride is a highly corrosive gas and is released from the battery’s fluorine salts. Even brief contact with the moisture in our eyes or lungs can create hydrofluoric acid and cause deep tissue burns and respiratory failure. Hydrogen cyanide is extremely poisonous and is released from the battery’s plastics and electrolyte compounds.
Even brief exposure to these toxins can cause lung inflammation, airway restriction, dizziness and vomiting. Prolonged exposure can result in seizures, loss of consciousness, heart failure and even death.
While they may be like other fires in some respects, a burning lithium-ion battery is a fire on steroids. All fires create smoke, and lots of them release toxic gases. In fact, it’s estimated that the inhalation of smoke and toxic gases causes between 50% to 80% of all fire-related deaths, rather than burns. However, very few fires start burning at 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit (F). In fact, the early stages of a housefire or flashover point are usually only about 900 to 1,200-degrees F. It usually takes a fully developed structural fire to reach the starting temperature of a lithium-ion battery fire.
All of this makes it safe to say that if there ever was a type of fire that calls out for more fire-resistance-rated corridors built using fire-rated glass to enable first responders to easily locate them, the overnight proliferation of lithium-ion battery-powered electronics into our built environment makes that case.
So, why aren’t new regulations requiring containment in effect now? Remember the adage, “the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak?” Well, it applies here, but might be better stated as “the danger is real, but collecting the data for a solution is weak.”
In March of this year, one of our most respected research organizations, the National Institute of Science and Technology, issued a technical note, Understanding the Risk of Lithium-Ion Battery Fires. Reading it, the most striking conclusion I drew is that the reporting of lithium-ion battery fires is not adequate to provide us with definitive solutions. Unfortunately, that means implementing protective measures will likely have to wait until better reporting is developed to more precisely identify the number, causes and effects these fires are having on our built environment.
I hope you stay tuned for my next blog. We’re going to look at some surprising uses for some otherwise common types of glass!