Battery Safety Testing

Our laboratory personnel pioneered the thermal hazard analysis of batteries back in the 1990s. ioKinetic has many years of experience testing the variety of battery chemistries available and all popular battery form factors.

Batteries of various chemistries and form factors are being utilized in more and more applications; from consumer electronics to power tools, automobile, airplane and even human body implants. Failure of these batteries can result in performance and safety concerns, such as capacity fade, overheating, release of toxic gases and even fire.

A Calorimetry can be used to measure the safety of batteries by simulating both normal and worst-case operating conditions safely under laboratory conditions. These techniques include differential scanning calorimetry, thermogravimetric analysis and accelerating rate calorimetry.

Services

We offer the following services to help you understand and manage your battery hazards:

• Thermal testing
• Cell design review
• Manufacturing quality review
• Onsite manufacturing process and quality auditing
• Cell and battery pack tear down and assessment
• Battery failure investigation

Instruments

A differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) and thermogravimetric analyzer (TGA) are excellent instruments to quantify impurities. They also measure the heat release and thermal degradation of battery raw and electrode materials.

In an Accelerating Rate Calorimeter (ARC^®), the normal cycling of battery discharging and charging can be simulated and exothermic runaway reactions can be quantified. In an ARC^®, the temperature and pressure response to heat is recorded and the following properties can be measured:

• Onset temperature
• Heat of reaction
• Maximum temperature and pressure-rise rate
• Total pressure and volume of gases generated
• Adiabatic temperature rise
• Vent temperature and pressure for cells with vent device

The scanning mode of the ARC^® and DSC allow very small heat releases to be detected and measured in a short timeframe.

Samples

• Electrode materials
• Separator materials
• Electrolytes
• Whole cell