Battery leak Lithium

BATFINK

BATFINK

10 kW
Joined
Aug 7, 2011
Messages
598
Hi guys just a quickie:

charged a 36 volt 10amp battery the other day and left it fully charged and unplugged for about 4/5/6 days and went to use it and when i hit a steep hill the power was cutting out, did the battery lose capacity just sitting around, i only did a few miles uphill with a 250 watt motor. any ideas?

JUST REALISED I COULD SMELL SOMEtHING FROM THE BATTERY, THE BATTERY CASE WAS LEAKING AND HOT. IT HAS BEEN WARM NOW FOR AROUND 30minutes, what has happened? What is the liquid that leaks from the battery?
 
WHAT IS THE LIQUID LEAKING FROM THE BATTERY? is it safe to open the battery up when it has cooled down?
 
What kind of Li battery?

A leaking cell can't be saved anyway, and can cause fire if it's Lipo. You will have to remove the leaking cell from your battery pack, and find one exactly the same to replace it.
 
it is definitely not lipo its lithium ion i think. Is it safe to handle though, what is the liquid that discharges from it?
 
will it cool down and is it safe from going on fire? was leaking but i think the worst of it is over
 
Don't know what your battery is made of, but if it didn't catch fire yet, you can assume that dismantling it won't be dangerous. Individual cells must have a number printed on, that would tell you what to look for to replace your dead cell.
 
Thanks, il let it cool and take a look at it tonight, hopefully it is salvageable
 
I would not wait. You never know if the heat that is produced is from corrosive action or a short that could damage some other cells. I'd take it apart, wash and inspect, test all the cells individually... Then search for replacement cell(s)
 
You don't want to handle leaky pouches with bare hands. Whatever it is, it could be toxic. Won't kill you on the spot, but the usual cancer risks you'd get from any solvents. Tolulene for instance is nasty. Solvents get absorbed right into bare skin so gloves is a good idea. Breathing the stink is not good either.

If the cells are all puffy, that is likely to be hydrogen gas, the source of the flames on burning packs. So don't let the gas out in front of a fire, like a cig in your face.

The leaked cells are ruined, and the pack is a hazard from now on. Don't store it in a place it would be bad to have it burn. Once the charge is gone from the cells though, to 0v, it should be safe to dispose of. Don't set it on fire discharging the cells too fast though, unless you want to see it burn. 8)
 
I don't like the sound of any toxic materials it will be disposed off!!!! i don't want to mess with any of that horrible stuff
 
If you are sensitive to smells and/or have asthma try not to inhale any of the fumes, i've smelled plenty of it and it's not " deadly " type thing but certainly not a good thing.. working outside in a drafty area is best if you have the will to open it up and have a look.. it's likely just one cell leaking electrolyte..
 
LiPo is Lithium Ion...

If the smell is vaguely sweet and kinda like cherry, then it's likely a LiPo cell leaking.

If the smell is an oily almost fishy stink, or very faint like cooking oil, it's likely round cells (though they are capable of using other solvents, including the cherry smelling EEC).

Step #1. Set it outside or somewhere safe.

Step #2. If this is something you bought from a retailer of this product (rather than buying second hand or whatever), tell the retailer and see what they say.

Step #3. If retailer options don't pan out, contact the Mfg to ask about disposal procedure for there defective product.
 
The pack is 5p 10s made of tab welded 18650's. Try to get a voltage for us on each of the 10s groups.

If they advertised this pack as 10Ah, then it's lithium cobalt.

The damage appears not to be cell related, but rather short circuit related from some physical effect (perhaps the shrink wrap on a positive cell terminal getting chaffed through on the nickle strip until it shorted to the negative polarity can.
 
I think this damage was caused by the fact that i lost power on the hill and i switched off the system and back on again and ran the battery again, i think maybe i ran it past the lowest voltage. I had charged the battery full before i used it but i left it for around 5 or 6 days and maybe it lost charge or maybe one of the cells was just ready to pop.


I ALSO MADE A MISTAKE OF OPENING THE BATTERY AND TRYING TO PULL OUT THE CELLS FROM THE BATTERY CASE WHILE IT STILL HAD CHARGE, CAUSING ANOTHER CELL TO BE DAMAGED BECAUSE IT WAS VERY TIGHT INSIDE THE CASE and i think maybe the soldered tab caused a tear AND SPARK ALMOST CAUSING A SMALL FIRE. I DID THIS IN A CONCRETE AREA WITH METAL ROOF WITH NOTHING TO BURN. I HAVE COVERED THE BATTERY PACK WITH LOTS AND LOTS OF SAND SO ITS SAFE.

I will leave the pack for a couple of weeks to discharge before i even think about messing with it again, should that be enough time. I might replace the dad cells with new ones or use the cells that are good to make a small battery or bottle battery.

Any advice what you guys would do?
 
yes it was a 10ah pack and i did get a chance to read the sides and you are correct on the cells :) i posted my other post before i got a chance to read your post
 
Sitting un-used for weeks would not do significant difference to capacity with lithium, sittnig for a week certainly was not the cause of the problem...

If there is a BMS in there, it would shut down normally if a cell or group fell below limits.. resetting and going again should only result in a 2nd cutout as soon as you draw power, etc...

Now.. no BMS or a bad one also happens sometimes and this can cause issues if you persist and drain an empty pack past the safety mark...
 
mmmnn i didn't expect this to happen only been e-biking a short time and it is a little frustrating as i was enjoying myself. Do you think i should just dispose of the battery and start again with a new battery and BMS
 
how should i go about taking out the cells and checking them all? whats the best way to discharge it or should i leave it with charge? I'm lost here so thanks for all the replies guys
 
no.1 .. do not rush into anything.. take your time and read all about it, then decide if this is something you are comfortable with doing..

Second, no , do not drain the pack flat to work on it, lithium cells should never be allowed to go below 3.0v ( the one's in your pack , unless they are Lifepo4 then it's 2.0v per cell ) .. working on an almost drained pack is a bit less volatile but no matter what, if you short stuff out things will get HOT and very FAST...... so it's important to work carefully and properly.

Plus, you canot discharge a fried pack like this unless you tap into each parallel group individually..... too much time.. and problems..

Things like no jewelry, clean working area, cover stuff with tape that you are not working on.. cover metal tools with tape up to the working end.. etc etc etc.....

if you have burried the pack in sand..... uhm...... might just want to start with a new pack lol...
 
It was dry sand and would by east to brush out or simply hoover/vacuum it out. I might just start with a new pack to be honest, i just feel sad that there are cells in there that are okay and could be used, batteries are so expensive. My friend is in china just now so maybe i could get him to send me something back. just going to have to wait as my budget is blown until october so its pedal power for me for a bit. The kit i have is way underpowered anyway and will be upgrading soon.
 
BATFINK said:
It was dry sand and would by east to brush out or simply hoover/vacuum it out. I might just start with a new pack to be honest, i just feel sad that there are cells in there that are okay and could be used, batteries are so expensive. My friend is in china just now so maybe i could get him to send me something back. just going to have to wait as my budget is blown until october so its pedal power for me for a bit. The kit i have is way underpowered anyway and will be upgrading soon.
Click to expand...


In the right hands, fixing that battery could be as simple as 30minutes of easy work and $<20 in cells.

In the wrong hands, it's a burned down house.
 
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