Transport - Battery Design

Whether looking to move raw materials, sub-components, cells or packs it is important to do this safely and within the legislative requirements. This page is based on a collection of threads around this subject.

Ageing

Even if the cells in transport/storage are not being cycled they will be ageing. The rate at which the cells lose capacity will be dependent on chemistry, temperature and state of charge. Ageing in storage is called Calendar Ageing.

Competent Authority Approval

An approval issued by the relevant national or international regulatory body, required under certain transport-of-dangerous-goods standards before some classes of battery can be shipped.

Damaged and Recycled

End-of-Life and Damaged Battery Shipping

There’s a significant difference between new batteries, end-of-life batteries and those determined to be damaged or defective. Recalled batteries pose a significant challenge. New batteries usually have fewer restrictions, while end-of-life batteries and damaged batteries require more stringent handling due to their potential hazards. Further on, batteries headed for recycling may have different sets of requirements (limited state of charge, marking and labelling, packaging, etc.) compared to those batteries headed for their second-life applications, or for repair or refurbishing for their original application.

Equivalent Lithium Ion Content

Equivalent Lithium Content (Calculator)

The equivalent lithium content lithium content of a lithium ion cell is simply 0.3g x Ah capacity of the cell.

Note that if the cell is rated in mAh you just need to divide the number by 1000 to get Ah.

Legislation, Rules and Regulations

UN 38.3 is the mandatory test series — altitude, thermal cycling, vibration, shock, external short circuit, impact/crush, overcharge and forced discharge — every lithium cell and battery must pass before it can be transported.
IEC 62281 sets out safety testing requirements for primary and secondary lithium cells and batteries during transport, closely aligned with the UN 38.3 test regime.
IATA DGR is the airline industry’s rulebook for packaging, labelling, quantity limits and documentation when shipping lithium batteries by air.
IMDG Code is the IMO’s mandatory rulebook for packaging, labelling and stowage of lithium batteries carried by sea.
ADR/RID/ADN are the European agreements governing the carriage of dangerous goods, including lithium batteries, by road, rail and inland waterway.

Shipping SOC (Shipping Cell Voltage)

The partial state of charge, typically around 30%, that cells are shipped from the factory at, chosen to balance transport safety regulations against self-discharge and calendar ageing during storage and transit.

Storage

Along with transport it is important to consider storage.

UN38.3

UN38.3 Transport Test covers testing of cells, modules, packs and products with installed lithium ion batteries. UN/DOT 38.3 is a self-certify standard. However, because of potential liability issues, it is best to use a third party test laboratory. UN 38.3 is a combination of environment tests, mechanical, thermal and electrical stresses.