Battery thermal runaway and data center outages highlight fire risks in emerging industries
The Fire Insurers Laboratories of Korea reported that automatic fire suppression systems stopped thermal runaway propagation and reignition in full-scale comparative tests involving pouch and cylindrical batteries for energy storage systems. Without the suppression systems, all the batteri
Battery thermal runaway and cascading fires emerge as new risks
Flexible responses through private-sector standards that supplement regulation
A firefighter moves a burned lithium-ion battery into a water tank for extinguishing fires at the National Information Resources Service in Yuseong District, Daejeon, where a fire broke out.
The Fire Insurers Laboratories of Korea conducted full-scale comparative fire tests under identical conditions to verify the actual extinguishing performance of automatic fire suppression systems on pouch and cylindrical batteries used in energy storage systems (ESS). The tests found that all the batteries burned completely without the suppression systems. With automatic fire suppression systems installed, however, the systems activated immediately after thermal runaway occurred, releasing extinguishing agent onto the fire, providing cooling, preventing thermal runaway propagation and completely preventing reignition. November 8, 2026. · Photo: Newsis
The Fire Insurers Laboratories of Korea conducted full-scale comparative fire tests under identical conditions to verify the actual extinguishing performance of automatic fire suppression systems on pouch and cylindrical batteries used in energy storage systems (ESS). The tests found that all the batteries burned completely without the suppression systems. With automatic fire suppression systems installed, however, the systems activated immediately after thermal runaway occurred, releasing extinguishing agent onto the fire, providing cooling, preventing thermal runaway propagation and completely preventing reignition.
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