Application

Lithium-Ion Battery Fire Suppression

Lithium-ion fires begin inside the cell, escalate through thermal runaway within seconds, and reignite long after they appear to be out. Fipron’s lithium-ion range is built to actually put them out — cooling the cells and breaking the chain reaction, with the right product matched to each installation.

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Putting out a lithium-ion fire

A lithium-ion fire is one of the hardest there is to extinguish: the cell drives its own chain reaction, makes its own oxygen and can reignite hours or days later. Holding it back is not enough — the cells have to be cooled and the propagation broken. Fipron’s lithium-ion range is built to do exactly that.

The right response

How Fipron acts depends on the product and the installation. For sealed packs, BESS cabinets and modules, passive Fipron Cord and Sticker react to heat at the source. For larger, open or fast-developing fires, MAM Concentrate and the PFAS-free FRS foam agents react directly to the fire — penetrating the battery structure, cooling the cells and knocking down flame across Class A–F. Together they give a matched response, from a single failing cell to a fully involved pack.

The science

Lithium-ion thermal runaway

Thermal runaway is a self-sustaining chain reaction inside a lithium-ion cell: once a cell produces heat faster than it can shed it, each reaction triggers the next and the process can no longer be stopped from outside. It is what turns one failed cell into a full-pack fire.

It starts with abuse — mechanical (a crash, crush or puncture), thermal (external heat or a nearby fire) or electrical (overcharge, over-discharge, or an internal short from a manufacturing defect or dendrite).

The temperature cascade

Stage 1

80–120°C

SEI breakdown

The cell’s protective SEI layer decomposes. The anode reacts with the electrolyte, giving off heat and the first flammable gases.

Stage 2

130–190°C

Separator collapse

The polymer separator melts and the electrodes touch. The internal short circuit dumps energy and spikes the temperature.

Stage 3

150–250°C

Oxygen release

The cathode decomposes and releases its own oxygen inside the cell — so the fire no longer needs outside air to burn.

Runaway

>250°C

Ignition & spread

Vented gases ignite. A single cell can pass 800°C and a full pack ~1,200°C, driving neighbouring cells into the same cycle.

Why it is so hard to stop

It makes its own oxygen. Because the cathode releases oxygen, the fire cannot simply be smothered — removing air is not enough.
It vents toxic, flammable gas. Escaping gases include hydrogen, carbon monoxide and hydrogen fluoride, and in enclosed spaces such as car parks can cause a vapour-cloud explosion.
It propagates cell to cell. Radiant heat forces neighbouring cells into runaway, so a pack fire builds within seconds.
It reignites. A pack that looks extinguished can re-enter runaway hours, days or even weeks later, until every cell is fully cooled.