Comparison of the fire consequences of an electric vehicle and an internal combustion engine vehicle

International audienceSince energy storage systems represent key new technologies in the development of electric vehicles (EV), risks pertaining to them have to be examined closely. Lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries powering EV contain highly energetic active materials and flammable organic electrolytes, which raise safety questions, different to conventional cars. In case of EV fire, concerns remain about batteries fire behavior, about their impact on the fire growth, about their fire-induced potential toxicity, especially in confined spaces and underground car parks and about their reaction with water in case of firemen intervention. Fire tests were therefore achieved for two French car manufacturers on two battery units, on a full battery pack, on an EV and on an analogous internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle. Thermal and toxic threat parameters governing the fire risk were quantified. For this purpose, the heat release rate and the effective heat of combustion were determined to qualify the thermal impact whereas the main emitted gases governing the toxic potency of the fire effluents were measured. Fire consequences of an EV and the corresponding ICE vehicle were compared. This paper aims at presenting the main results of these fire tests

Oncological patients' reactions to COVID-19 pandemic: A single institution prospective study.

peer reviewedBACKGROUND: The spread of the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a rapid reorganization in all human and hospital activities, with impact on cancer patients. AIM: An analysis of cancer patients fears, and awareness of COVID-19 has been done in this study. METHODS AND RESULTS: We analyzed cancer patients' reactions to the pandemic and their perception of oncological care reorganization, through a 12-item survey, proposed at the peak of pandemic and 3 months later. Overall, 237 patients were included in the study. During the peak of pandemic 34.6% of patients were more worried about COVID-19 than cancer versus 26.4% in the post-acute phase (p = .013). Although 49.8% of patients in the acute phase and 42.3% in the post-acute phase considered their risk of death if infected ≥50%, and more than 70% of patients thought to be at higher risk of complications, the majority of them did not consider the possibility to stop or delay their treatment. Patients were more interested in following news about COVID-19 than cancer and they complied with all preventive measures in more than 90% of the cases. CONCLUSIONS: Although cancer patients worried about COVID-19 and evaluated the risk of complication or death due to COVID-19 as extremely high, they were still asking for the best oncological treatment

Batteries du futur

National audienc

Safety issues related to stationary electrochemical energy storage on industrial sites

The present contribution discusses the safety issues related to stationary applications of electrochemical energy storage on hazardous industrial plants. Although only few accidents related to stationary electrochemical energy storage were reported, past accidents like the fire which occurred on a sodium-sulphur stationary system in September 2011 in Joso City (Japan) remind that the roll-out of such emerging technologies on industrial sites should be considered as both hazard sources and targets of potential domino effects. Different technologies of stationary batteries exist, from low to high energy/power ratio, according to their intended use. These various technologies, together with the different configurations that can be expected on an industrial site, are addressed. A number of standards specify tests to evaluate the safety and abuse tolerance of batteries for mobile and stationary applications. Some of them can be viewed in parallel with the French approach for controlling major accident hazards on industrial sites. It appears that some tests may enable to exclude some events from the quantification of the annual probability of occurrence of an accident scenario, which can provide greater flexibility for the hazardous industrial sites

Accompagnement à la maîtrise des risques accidentels associés aux applications innovantes des batteries au lithium-ion

Sustainable development of innovative electric energy storage systems are needed for both mobile and stationary applications. With increased energy and power densities obtained with lithium metal and ion systems, that trigger some atypical hybrid hazard in case of abuse conditions of use, handling or storage, safety focused has been recently promoted at a world-wide level. We briefly update here how far INERIS contributes at national as well as at international level to this research effort, focusing on how this effort has been recently restructured and outlining some important results. Perspectives are also shortly given.Dans le développement durable de nouvelles filières de stockage propres et sûres d’énergie, nécessaires à la promotion de l’électromobilité et des applications stationnaires, la prise en compte de la sécurité reste un enjeu important. En témoignent les nombreuses initiatives prises aux États-Unis, au Japon ainsi qu’en Europe, pour approfondir les connaissances permettant la maîtrise de ces risques, dans les différents contextes d’utilisation de ces batteries et sur toutes leurs chaînes de valeur. Une sécurité plus délicate à assurer est en effet la conséquence d’un potentiel de performance (densité d’énergie, puissance spécifique) notablement plus grand que celui offert par les technologies antérieures (batteries acide-plomb, cadmium-nickel…). Le phénomène dangereux atypique qu’il convient de contrôler est, dans la plupart des scénarios d’intérêt, l’emballement thermique figure 1 potentiellement amorçable par sollicitations thermique, mécanique ou électrique abusives