Not much new except maybe the guilty device in the official explanation of this damaging on-board ship fire last year: an exploding battery cell. CCTV evidence of the incident here (snapshots). For caption, see linked report.
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The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) on Thursday cited thermal runaway of a cell within a handheld radio’s lithium-ion battery as the cause of a fire on an oil tanker docked in Baton Rouge, La., reports MarineLink.
The Liberian-registered oil tanker S-Trust was docked at the Genesis Port Allen Terminal on November 13, 2022, when a fire on the bridge was sparked by one of the cells in a lithium-ion battery for an ultra-high-frequency handheld radio exploding, the NTSB’s investigation found.
The batteries and chargers for the handheld radios were located on the communications table on the bridge.
By the time the vessel’s crew extinguished the fire, the S-Trust’s navigation, communication and alarm systems were damaged beyond use.
In total, the fire caused $3 million in damage to the vessel. No injuries were reported.
Lithium-ion battery cell explosions are typically caused by a thermal runaway, a chemical reaction that can cause the cell to ignite and explode, according to the NTSB. A lithium-ion battery cell can spontaneously experience a thermal runaway if damaged, shorted, overheated, defective or overcharged.
The NTSB said crews can help to prevent thermal runaways and ensuing fires by:
Following manufacturers’ instructions for the care and maintenance of lithium-ion batteries;
Properly disposing of damaged batteries;
Avoiding unsupervised charging; and
Keeping batteries and chargers away from heat sources and flammable materials.
Full report here.
via Tallbloke’s Talkshop
November 10, 2023 at 10:22AM
Iowa Climate Science Education 
