Building the plane as we fly it: Lithium-ion batteries in practice
By Bobby Salvesen and Mike Monaco
The Haz Mat Guys Podcast
With the world seemingly being consumed with the latest calamity, there is much discussion on who is ultimately responsible for it, whether this is a fire or a hazmat incident, and what we wear. As the frequency and the sharing of information becomes more prolific, the firming of operational guidelines and techniques will inevitably happen. For now, we would like to take more of a “consider this” approach to personal protective garments for battery response. Due to the infancy of the topic, the standards and regulations are behind. Through thorough discussion, we can form the standard and put forth a best practice for handling this type of event.
Currently, we would make the wager that a vast majority, if not all, battery responses use turnout gear to handle this emergency. This makes sense since the primary hazards are heat and fire. However, upon further inspection, heat and fire are not the only hazards here. Of course, there are incredibly hazardous gases that are emitted. We don our SCBAs and just about all respiratory hazards are mitigated. Now we can dismiss that for the time being and focus on what we wear to protect our bodies.
But turnout gear has its pros and cons as well. It is bulky; difficult to work in when working in tight spaces like cell phone vaults and energy storage containers; and, depending on the month, can be hot and heavy. Turnout gear protects from heat, but it’s questionable if this protection extends to a battery’s heat. Since a battery’s heat is typically produced in a small, focused location at about 1500°F, turnout gear may not offer even limited-time exposure. As for the possibility of electrical arc flash, turnout gear can give some “distance” from the contact point to the skin, but how much is anyone's guess. Wearers are also indirectly protected from vapors and solids to a limited degree.
If we consider the electrical component, as done in the electric generation industry, NFPA 70E Cat 2 flame-resistant garments may be regarded as something to investigate in the future. For example, if the garment could be paired with an additional CR/FR layer over that, it may be an economical option for some departments or those doing a tremendous number of battery responses.
Most responders will say that the turnout gear works fine. And it does…for now. The industry makes new garments to handle things all the time, from garments with improved design features to garments that offer multi-hazard protection. Suppose this battery trend keeps going the way it is. In that case, a conversation needs to begin in your mind, spill onto the kitchen table at work and become a national (if not global) discussion around the most efficient thing needed to respond to this type of emergency.
The argument can be made that “this too shall pass.” It will. Technology is improving, and the military is already six versions past what we see in the streets today. But this is something we are dealing with today, so let’s start the conversation.
As you can imagine, this topic is constantly evolving. It’s something we try to address frequently on our podcast, which you can find on our website: thehazmatguys.com. Take a listen or reach out to us for training on this and many more topics.