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from the Note-to-self:-do-NOT-overcharge-the-Tesla dept.
An Anonymous Coward writes:
The Formula Student Germany competition includes both combustion and electric classes, small cars built by engineering students around the world. Their press release https://www.formulastudent.de/press-pr/news/news-details/article/incident-at-hotel-in-hockenheim/ says,
Yesterday a battery pack of one of the registered teams for FSG 2016 caught fire in a hotel room in Hockenheim. The incident injured 4 of the team members that were treated in hospital. 3 were released later during the day whereas one of the team members is still in treatment with burn injuries.
The fire substantially damaged the building and a part of the hotel had to be closed. The fire and the incident overall have been handled by the local fire department, ambulance service and police.
A local paper (in German) also has a story with photo of the burned out room, http://www.heidelberg24.de/region/hockenheim-zimmer-hotel-karlsruher-strasse-ausgebrannt-drei-verletzte-6649509.html
Google Translates at https://translate.google.com/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&js=y&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.heidelberg24.de%2Fregion%2Fhockenheim-zimmer-hotel-karlsruher-strasse-ausgebrannt-drei-verletzte-6649509.html&edit-text=
Three hotel guests - members of a Chinese student group, the participants of the event Formula Student [strike]are probably[/strike] at the Hockenheimring - brought with suspected smoke inhalation in a hospital.
The cause of the fire and the amount of damage is not yet known. It remains unclear even if the occupied hotel can be based again on the same day.
Battery packs for these cars are typically in the range of 5kWh, for example see this student paper, http://dspace.mit.edu/bitstream/handle/1721.1/83741/864601926-MIT.pdf?sequence=2 (from MIT, not the same team involved in the fire).
(Score: 3, Insightful) by theluggage on Thursday August 11 2016, @04:14PM
The Formula Student Germany competition includes both combustion and electric classes,
So, perhaps the lesson is - don't take a high-power (transport grade) Lithium battery anywhere you wouldn't take a can of gasoline? Don't re-charge one anywhere you wouldn't take the lid off the gas can*?
Or, given that we're all toting personal electronics, should interior designers start building in "charge tables" with flame-retardant surfaces and positioned clear of curtains etc?
(* Oh, and that doesn't mean charge your battery right next to the gas can!!!)
(Score: 2) by Scruffy Beard 2 on Thursday August 11 2016, @05:00PM
I have such a charging tray.
I bought a large Pyrex(tm) baking dish for charging batteries with a charger that does no appear to be UL certified. If I ever make my own charger, that won't be UL certified either.
(Score: 2) by Scruffy Beard 2 on Thursday August 11 2016, @05:16PM
The tray approach only works for small batteries. Mine is about 14.4 Wh.
According to TFS, the largest risk to health was smoke inhalation.
(Score: 2) by Scruffy Beard 2 on Thursday August 11 2016, @05:18PM
err, make that 120Wh. I multiplied pack voltage by cell voltage, not current.time rating.
(Score: 1) by anubi on Friday August 12 2016, @05:53AM
I get the idea that whatever is good for the oven is good for the battery.
So, I store some of my Pyrex bakeware on my bedroom dresser drawer now... as where I put charging devices.
( By now, almost all of my devices run on 18650 cells as well, and many of those cells have unknown histories, )
"Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." [KJV: I Thessalonians 5:21]