The 2023 ESS Safety & Reliability Forum, sponsored by the Department of Energy Office of Electricity Energy Storage Program, provides a platform for discussing the current state of ESS Safety & Reliability and stratagems for improving cell-to-system level safety and reliability. This forum will provide an overview of work in, and creating the future of, energy storage safety and reliability. Attendees span academia, government, manufacturers, utilities, and first responders.
This meeting was held from June 6-8, 2023, at Eldorado Hotel & Spa in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Tuesday, June 6, 2023
| Presentation | Speaker | Organization |
|---|---|---|
| Opening Remarks | Amy Halloran | Director of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Grid Modernization, Sandia National Laboratories |
| Welcome | Imre Gyuk | Director, Department of Energy, Office of Electricity, Energy Storage Program |
| Keynote Speaker | ||
| Keynote Address The Role of Energy Storage in California’s Clean Energy Future |
Mike Gravely | California Energy Commission |
Session 1: Design and Testing for Safer and More Reliable Systems
| Presentation | Speaker | Organization |
|---|---|---|
| Fire Suppression at the Cell Level in Energy Storage Systems | Michael Hoff | American Battery Solutions |
| Safety Testing of Batteries Beyond UL9540A, Exploring Current Deficiencies of the Current Standard and Examples of Testing Approaches Beyond the Standard | Martin Plass | DNV BEST Test & Commercialization Center |
| Li-ion Battery Fire Hazard Evaluation — Testing, Modeling, and Scale-Up | Yi Wang | FM Global |
| State of Health and Safety Assessment of Second Use Li-ion Battery Modules | Ed Thomsen | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory |
| Are Aged Cells More Dangerous than Fresh Cells? | Jun Xu | University of North Carolina |
| Thermal Runaway Severity Testing and Ranking | Hsin Wang | Oak Ridge National Laboratory |
| Slowing and Mitigating Thermal Runaway: a Heat Transfer Perspective | Andrew Kurzawski | Sandia National Laboratories |
Session 2: Early Detection for Intervention
| Presentation | Speaker | Organization |
|---|---|---|
| Big Data for the Diagnosis and Prognosis of Deployed Energy Storage Systems | Matthieu Dubarry | University of Hawaii |
| Defining Diagnostic Parameters for Early Detection of Thermal Runaway | Alex Bates | Sandia National Laboratories |
| Towards Li-ion Battery Fire Mitigation and Reignition Prevention: Model-informed Fast Discharge Algorithm with Venting Constraints | Vivian Tran | University of Michigan |
| Sensing and the Physics of Thermal Runaway in Stationary Storage Applications | Brian Engle | Amphenol |
| Battery Analytics for ESS Failure Prediction and Preventative Maintenance | Ryan Franks | Twaice |
Session 3: Safety and Reliability of non-Li-ion Technologies
| Presentation | Speaker | Organization |
|---|---|---|
| Characterization of Safety For Two Flow Battery Chemistries | Judy Jeevarajan | UL Research Institutes |
| Alternative Storage Solutions for Stationary and Standby Applications | Dan Lambert | ZincFive |
| Perspective on Safety Considerations of Next-Generation Batteries for Military Use | Elyse Baroncini | DEVCOM C5ISR Center |
| Grid Storage Launchpad (GSL) – A New Facility to Accelerate the Development of Energy Storage Technologies for the Grid | David Reed | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory |
| Closing Remarks | Imre Gyuk | Director, DOE OE Energy Storage Program |
| Welcome Reception and Poster Display Sponsored by Amphenol Advanced Sensors |
Wednesday, June 7, 2023
| Presentation | Speaker | Organization |
|---|---|---|
| Opening Remarks | Sara Pecak | Senior Manager of Power Sources Technology Group, Sandia National Laboratories |
| Keynote Speaker | ||
| Keynote Address Energy Storage Systems and Fire Fighter Response Safety |
Sean DeCrane | International Association of Fire Fighters |
Session 4: Energy Storage Safety Codes and Standards
| Presentation | Presenter | Organization |
|---|---|---|
| ESS Safety Codes and Standards – Which Way is Straight? | Chris Searles | CGS and Associates |
| Panel Discussion Certifying Batteries to Ensure Safety/Reliability/Performance |
David Rosewater (Panel Session Chair) |
Sandia National Laboratories |
| Jim Biggins | CAC Specialty | |
| Lloyd Gordon | Specialized Electrical Safety Services LLC | |
| Jody Leber | CSA Group | |
| LaTanya Schwalb | UL Solutions |
Session 5: Ensuring Safety During Operation
| Presentation | Speaker | Organization |
|---|---|---|
| Effective Containment of Very High Density Energy Storage Devices Under Explosion and Fire | Alonso Rodriguez | ThermaLimits, Inc. |
| Grid Standards Challenges and Opportunities for V2G and Hybrid Systems | Haukur (Hawk) Asgeirsson | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory |
| Mitigating Risks of Explosion and Fire Within BESS | Bernard Dabe | STIF |
| Evolving DC Worker Safety Standards | Lloyd Gordon | Specialized Electrical Safety Services LLC |
| Keynote Speaker | ||
| Keynote Address Electrical Safety Technology for Battery Energy Storage System, Focusing on BESS in Korea |
Ji-yeon Kim | Korea Electrical Safety Corporation (KESCO) Electrical Safety Research Institute |
| For more information on this presentation, please contact Dr. Ji-yeon Kim at jyk89@kesco.or.kr | ||
Session 6: Responding to a Safety Event
| Presentation | Speaker | Organization |
|---|---|---|
| Energy Storage from Compliance to Training | Christina Francis | Tesla |
| Lessons Learned from Past Failures Around the World | Lakshmi Srinivasan | Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) |
| An Overview of NHTSA’s EV Safety Activities | Tony Thampan | National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) |
| Industry Failures: Battery Energy Storage Systems Lessons Learned | Paul Hayes | Hiller |
| Characterization of Residential ESS Fire and Explosion Hazards to Improve Fire Fighter Safety | Adam Barowy | UL Fire Research Institute |
| Alex Schraiber | UL Fire Research and Development | |
| Closing Remarks | Imre Gyuk | Director, DOE OE Energy Storage Program |
Thursday, June 8, 2023
| Presentation | Speaker | Organization |
|---|---|---|
| Opening Remarks | Yuliya Preger | Sandia National Laboratories |
ESS Safety Breakout Sessions
| Topic | Moderator | Organization |
|---|---|---|
| Codes and Standards | Jaime Kolln | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory |
| Research and Development | Loraine Torres-Castro | Sandia National Laboratories |
| Incident Response and Outreach | Waylon Clark | Sandia National Laboratories |
| Report Out and Summary of Breakout Sessions | Yuliya Preger | Sandia National Laboratories |