What safety advisories do manufacturers give about battery-related explosions in war zones?
Executive summary
Manufacturers and standards bodies frame the core danger as thermal runaway — a rapid, self‑accelerating heating process that can emit toxic and flammable gases and spread between cells — and they advise design, testing and operational controls to prevent ignition or limit propagation [1] [2]. China’s new GB 38031‑2025 standard goes further than prior rules by requiring batteries “not to catch fire or explode” even during thermal runaway and adds thermal diffusion tests, crash and fast‑charge tolerance requirements; CATL says it has products that meet that standard [3] [4] [5].
1. Manufacturers’ central safety message: design to avoid thermal runaway and propagation
Battery makers and system integrators emphasize preventing initiation of thermal runaway and stopping it from spreading cell‑to‑cell. Industry guidance and standards identify electrical, mechanical and thermal abuse as common triggers and push for robust Battery Management Systems (BMS), mechanical protections, and system‑level containment and ventilation to limit heat and gas release [1] [2]. The power‑storage trade press recommends pairing explosion protection, fire detection and suppression as an integrated strategy for BESS (battery energy storage systems) [2].
2. New regulatory posture: “No Fire, No Explosion” becomes a testable requirement
Regulators in China revised the national battery safety standard (GB 38031‑2025) to require that batteries must not catch fire or explode during thermal runaway and to include thermal diffusion tests, crash impact and fast‑charging tolerance checks. The standard replaces an earlier five‑minute warning requirement with a mandate for physical resistance to fire and explosion during abuse conditions [3] [5] [4]. CATL says it passed the new tests and already produces cells and packs that meet the rule [4].
3. What manufacturers advise operators and first responders
Manufacturers and safety institutes highlight that battery heating can take minutes before spark, fire or explosion, and the initial spread to adjacent units often occurs in a 5–20 minute window — a timeframe that can outlast typical emergency response — so they advise early detection, evacuation distance planning, and specialized responder training [6]. Fire‑safety organizations and industry guides stress that thermal runaway produces toxic and potentially explosive gases, reinforcing the need for detection, isolation and controlled ventilation [1] [2].
4. Field mitigations: design, testing and operational controls recommended
Across sources the recommended mitigation layers are consistent: cell chemistry selection and mechanical packaging; BMS monitoring and emergency shutdown logic; thermal barriers or “no propagation” technologies; rigorous crash and fast‑charge testing; and system‑level fire detection and suppression tailored to battery gas and heat profiles [3] [2] [1]. For grid‑scale BESS, vendors and authors recommend partners who can supply end‑to‑end explosion protection, detection and suppression solutions [2] [7].
5. Known limitations and disagreements in the record
Reporting shows regulatory ambition outpacing universal capability: China’s rule demands no fire or explosion even under thermal runaway, a higher bar than earlier standards and one that industry observers say will raise R&D costs and spur consolidation [3]. Sources differ on operational tradeoffs: suppression measures (like EV fire blankets) can suppress flames but might trap flammable gases and raise explosion risk for firefighters, underscoring that a single countermeasure can introduce new hazards [8]. Available sources do not mention specific manufacturer advisories targeted to vehicles in active war zones or guidance about using batteries while under direct hostilities.
6. Practical implications for operators in high‑risk environments
For owners and operators the practical advice in the sources is to prioritize equipment certified to stricter tests (e.g., thermal diffusion/no‑propagation), ensure fast‑charge and crash‑resilience performance, maintain active monitoring and emergency shutdown capability, and train emergency teams for battery‑specific hazards because fires can reignite and produce toxic and explosive gases [3] [6] [2]. For grid installations, planners are urged to factor spacing, mitigation and partner‑provided explosion protection into procurement [2] [7].
7. What the reporting does not say — important gaps
None of the supplied sources offer manufacturer‑issued, war‑zone‑specific advisories such as operating batteries under kinetic attack, evacuation distances for munitions impacts, or tactical guidance for armed conflicts. Available sources do not mention protocols for transporting or storing batteries in declared conflict zones nor do they describe manufacturer warranties or legal disclaimers tied to wartime damage (not found in current reporting).
Bottom line: industry and regulators are shifting from warning systems toward engineering batteries that resist ignition and propagation, backed by layered detection and suppression — but countermeasures bring tradeoffs, responder risks and open questions about exceptional conditions such as active war zones [3] [2] [6].