Causes of short circuit in lithium battery:
1. Component damage
Short circuits are often caused by insulation damage or improper wiring. For example, equipment defects caused by aging insulation materials, poor design, manufacturing, installation, or maintenance can develop into short circuits.
2. Impact of meteorological conditions
For example, flashover caused by lightning strikes, and power poles collapsing due to broken overhead lines caused by windstorms and icing on conductors.
3. Human-caused damage
For example, workers may disconnect the power while the circuit is under load, fail to remove the grounding wire when repairing lines or equipment, or cause operational errors or theft of electrical wires.
4. Other reasons
Digging trenches damages cables, and birds and animals bridging the current-carrying bare conductors.
Three dangerous consequences of a short circuit in a lithium-ion battery
1. Leakage: When the internal temperature of a lithium-ion battery rises slowly, the outer casing gradually melts, and the protective layer fails to perform its protective function, leading to leakage of corrosive electrolyte.
2. Explosion: The internal temperature of a lithium-ion battery rises rapidly. Unlike the outer casing, which gradually melts when the temperature rises more slowly, the internal space of the battery is insufficient to contain the expanding gas under heating conditions. As a result, the battery container explodes due to excessive pressure.
3. Spontaneous combustion: The sparks from a short circuit can ignite the electrolyte instantly. This is because the electrolyte is composed of flammable liquid. The burning electrolyte will ignite the plastic body, causing the battery to burn. If there are flammable materials around the battery, it will cause a fire.
