My mom handed me a "dead" lithium CR-2 battery from her camera and asked me to pick up a new one on a trip to town. I dropped it into my pocket and went about my day.
Thank goodness for well-placed highway pullouts!
I hadn't driven all that far when I noticed my leg getting hot. And hotter by the millisecond!!!
By the time I pulled off the road and got out of the truck the battery was too hot to handle. No dignity here, picture a wildman dropping trow by the side of the road and shaking out his pants pocket.
Laying there on the ground, the battery continued getting hotter for another few minutes- hot enough to blister fingers I'm sure- before finally starting to cool down.
I'm assuming the arrangement of coins and pocket knife pressed tight in the pocket resulted in some shorting, but by all indications the reaction continued for awhile.
Whether or not it would have caused a fire or exploded, I'm convinced it could have caused damage in a camera bag.
The CR-2 is the fat, short battery that looks like half of a AA. Being so short, it may be easier to short out, but this kid is going to take care to isolate all lithium batteries from potential shorts.
You should have put this in the "hot" topics forum, Hank.
I've never heard of this happening before, but can easily imagine the few coins in your pocket could be enough to cause issues.
I had an employee accidentally discharge a small canister of pepper spray that was attached to the keyring in his pocket a few years ago while we were driving. Your story reminds me of the crazy dance he did as he stripped his clothes while running to a nearby roadside ditch to quench his "pills" in some cool water. It was quite the scene.
All kidding aside, I'm glad you weren't seriously injured- other than the embarrassment of a roadside strip-down. Thanks for the heads-up.
Posted by Jim Erhardt on December 8, 2009 at 6:08 PM
...soon we'll have 300 pounds of those buggers powering our cars...
Maybe you guys need to carry GFI circuit breakers in you pockets, because we wouldn't want you to be 'short changed', now would we?
Also, I hear 'hot pants' are back in style, so Hank and Kent would be up with the trend.
Thanks for the heads up. Lithium ion batteries have a high charge density, and a dead short will result in high currrent flows, as you discovered. Additionally, lithium metal and fumes are quite toxic, so if one of these batteries is breached, be sure to dispose of it immediately and properly. Lithium is also very combustible, and may ignite in the presence of air or water. Therefore, never dispose of a lithium battery (or any battery) in a fire.
Discussion
7 repliesThank goodness for well-placed highway pullouts!
I hadn't driven all that far when I noticed my leg getting hot. And hotter by the millisecond!!!
By the time I pulled off the road and got out of the truck the battery was too hot to handle. No dignity here, picture a wildman dropping trow by the side of the road and shaking out his pants pocket.
Laying there on the ground, the battery continued getting hotter for another few minutes- hot enough to blister fingers I'm sure- before finally starting to cool down.
I'm assuming the arrangement of coins and pocket knife pressed tight in the pocket resulted in some shorting, but by all indications the reaction continued for awhile.
Whether or not it would have caused a fire or exploded, I'm convinced it could have caused damage in a camera bag.
The CR-2 is the fat, short battery that looks like half of a AA. Being so short, it may be easier to short out, but this kid is going to take care to isolate all lithium batteries from potential shorts.
Sheesh!
I've never heard of this happening before, but can easily imagine the few coins in your pocket could be enough to cause issues.
I had an employee accidentally discharge a small canister of pepper spray that was attached to the keyring in his pocket a few years ago while we were driving. Your story reminds me of the crazy dance he did as he stripped his clothes while running to a nearby roadside ditch to quench his "pills" in some cool water. It was quite the scene.
All kidding aside, I'm glad you weren't seriously injured- other than the embarrassment of a roadside strip-down. Thanks for the heads-up.
Kent in SD
Also, I hear 'hot pants' are back in style, so Hank and Kent would be up with the trend.
Thanks for the heads up. Lithium ion batteries have a high charge density, and a dead short will result in high currrent flows, as you discovered. Additionally, lithium metal and fumes are quite toxic, so if one of these batteries is breached, be sure to dispose of it immediately and properly. Lithium is also very combustible, and may ignite in the presence of air or water. Therefore, never dispose of a lithium battery (or any battery) in a fire.
-P
Here's more about Lithium than you'd ever want to know:
Lenntech--Lithium
And more about Lithium Ion Batteries:
Wikipedia Article
-P