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Popular online sources* produce wildly varying opinions on whether Li-po battery packs that have swelled constitute a significant fire / explosion risk or not. Is there any whitepaper, study, manufacturer fact sheet, or consensus among professionals on whether the risk of continuing to use a battery pack that has swelled (knowingly or unknowingly) is significant or not?

*
washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/04/18/…. “Swelling certainly isn’t good, and it’s an indicator of decreased performance,” said David Mitlin, a battery researcher and professor at the University of Texas at Austin. “But it doesn’t instantly mean the battery is going to catch on fire.”

ocrdu
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NoobPointerException
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    Is this really a contentious issue? Who is saying that using swelled LiPos is safe/fine; can you provide a source? – Brendan Simpson Sep 23 '22 at 15:14
  • Example: https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/04/18/lithium-ion-battery-swelling-why/. “Swelling certainly isn’t good, and it’s an indicator of decreased performance,” said David Mitlin, a battery researcher and professor at the University of Texas at Austin. “But it doesn’t instantly mean the battery is going to catch on fire.”. I think we can all agree it is not safe nor optimal, but is it a significant risk? – NoobPointerException Sep 23 '22 at 15:43
  • You should add that comment to your question. – StainlessSteelRat Sep 23 '22 at 15:47
  • DKNguyen: It's not that simple. For example a somewhat under dimensioned PCB trace can lead to heat and fire, but it is quite unlikely. I want to get a feeling for if the swelling is actually a significant risk or if it's a better-safe-than-sorry recommendation not based on actual failure statistics. – NoobPointerException Sep 23 '22 at 15:55
  • @NoobPointerException Define "significant". If you can't identify and differentiate the cause and degree of swelling from any another, or you can't predict whether it will degrade into a fireball as you continue to use it, then you need to go with worst case due to the potential consequences. It's why you don't touch dud munitions you find in the ground. Just because "*it doesn’t instantly mean the battery is going to catch on fire*" does not mean it can't. – DKNguyen Sep 23 '22 at 15:55
  • @NoobPointerException A fire from an undersized PCB trace is not the same kind of fire that can come from a LiPo. – DKNguyen Sep 23 '22 at 15:56

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Just an answer with an academic paper with very many references:

Qingsong Wang, Binbin Mao, Stanislav I. Stoliarov, Jinhua Sun, "A review of lithium ion battery failure mechanisms and fire prevention strategies," Progress in Energy and Combustion Science, Volume 73, 2019, Pages 95-131. link

jonathanjo
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