Freeze lithium ion car batteries to safe and cheaper transportation

The ability tofreeze batteriesis appealing as they could betransported safelyin a muchcheaperand environmentally friendly way without being damaged.

Actually, damaged and defective lithium ion car batteries arehard to transportas legislation dictates they have to be placed within an explosion proof box which costs thousands of pounds to be transported.

Researchers fromWMG at the University of Warwickin collaboration withJaguar Land Rover engineershave been able tofreeze lithium ion batteries with liquid nitrogenwhich would not require expensive explosion proof containers.

Anexplosion proof boxto transport atypical Tesla sized batterycosts€10,000and afurther €10,000 for the UN accreditation, however, the ability to transport them in plastic containers which cost acouple of hundred poundshas been made more accessible thanks to researchers from WMG at the University of Warwick.

In the paper,‘Cycle life of lithium ion batteries after flash cryogenic freezing’ published in the Journal of Energy Storage, researchers highlight thatcryogenic freezingdoesnot reduce lithium ion battery’s energy capacityor affect cycle or service life, and could be transported in a safer way.

As the sales of electric vehicles increases, there is more concern for the transportation of damaged and defective lithium ion battery packs.

Explosion boxes are used to contain the battery in case it goes intothermal runway, anoverheating conditionwhich can lead to violent explosions and toxic gases being released. However being able to cryogenically flash freeze the batteries completely removes the risk of an explosion, and could therefore mean they can be transported safely in a plastic box.

Researchers who were part of theELEVATE project funded by ESPRC, Catapult and supported by Jaguar Land Rover tested the batteries activity before they froze cells with liquid nitrogen and after, they also drove nails through the frozen cell to test the safety of them, and managed to show that their performance was not effected after freezing.

When being transported batteries will have to be kept in a lorryat -35 degrees, however the amount of packaging is significantly less than explosion proof boxes, making the process more sustainable.

Dr Thomas Grandjean from WMG, at the University of Warwickcomments:

Transporting damaged and defective batteries is an expensive and unsustainable process, however being able to freeze them with liquid nitrogen could save thousands of pounds and help electric vehicle manufacturers be more sustainable.

We tested the batteries in the most extreme abuse conditions, such as driving nails through the cells and inducing external short circuits, proving that the freezing process is effective and safe.

Photo credits: WMG University of Warwick

Source:University of Warwick