Lith-Ex Battery Fire Extinguishers
It’s vital that you’re providing the right fire extinguishers on your premises. Have you considered the fire risks of devices like phones, laptops, tablets, or even electric bikes and e-scooters?
The Lithium-ion batteries in these devices create a unique fire risk. The batteries themselves are safe as designed, but with so many devices potentially in the building, failures can happen.
Part of our fire extinguisher servicing and inspection service involves ensuring that you have the right class of fire extinguishers on your premises. So, how do you deal with the fire risk of Li-ion batteries? Luckily Lith-Ex Fire Extinguishers are a safe solution.
Lith-Ex AVD Fire Extinguishers are designed to extinguish Li-ion battery fires
The unique challenge of Lithium-ion battery fires is that the fire will continue to get hotter until all of the battery’s stored energy is dispersed. With traditional fire extinguishers, this essentially means that you need to continue damping the fire until the battery dies out. This can be an issue with water or foam-based dispersion, as the water will simply flow away from the fire source.
But, with Lith-Ex Aqueous Vermiculite Dispersion fire extinguishers, the extinguishing agent is specifically formulated to cool the battery while also interrupting the thermal runaway process which causes the fire, extinguishing the fire quicker than traditional extinguishers. Plus, it creates a thermally insulating film which will actually stop the fire spreading to adjacent cells – a common problem with multi-celled Li-ion batteries like those in laptops.
How does the AVD agent work?
The Aqueous Vermiculite Dispersion extinguishing agent in these extinguishers is made up of water and a high concentration of vermiculite platelets. Using this agent, the water cools the system quickly while the mineral platelets interrupt the chain reaction occurring in the battery by coating elements.
A refractory and thermally insulating film is then formed which impedes oxygen flow to the fuel source, as well as isolating the heat source from the other areas of the battery. This then slows the growth of the fire and ultimately puts it out.
This guidance document on Li Ion battery fires from the Fire Industry Association contains lots more handy information on this type of fire.
Speak to the fire control experts
We can supply your Lith-Ex fire extinguishers, and put in place a testing regime to ensure continued compliance. Speak to Fire Control Services for expert advice and guidance on your fire extinguisher needs. We’ll assess your existing extinguishers, ensure they’re meeting the necessary legal requirements, and advise on any issues. We are certified in this area.
Request a quote
You can request a free, no obligation quotation using the form below. Please give us as much information about your project as you can e.g. the location, size, services required, and a member of our friendly team will be in touch.
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