May 19, 2023
Electric vehicles are affordable, easy to move, and widespread in our country. With rise in popularity of electric vehicles, news of electric vehicles catching fire while charging is not uncommon. In fact, electric vehicle fires happen almost every day in country.
August 16, at 0:39 a.m., a house caught fire in Huajiaping District, Hutian City, Yuanzhou County, Yuanzhou County, Yichun City. The local fire brigade quickly dispatched 12 commanders and firefighters with two fire trucks carrying water tanks to scene. After more than an hour of hard work of commanders and fighters, fire was successfully extinguished. According to head of household's description, there were 3 electric vehicles charging on night of incident, and it was suspected that electric vehicles spontaneously ignited and started fire. As a result, all 3 vehicles and 6 electric vehicles ignited and need to be burned.
Early in morning of same day, at an electric vehicle charging station on Baixi Road, Heshuikou, Guangming District, Shenzhen, several electric vehicles that were being charged suddenly burst into flames. The flames engulfed two floors, while most of surrounding residents were still asleep. Fortunately, patrol team from Martin Police Station of Guangming Public Security Bureau detected fire in time, and finally, with joint efforts of all parties, successfully extinguished open fire.
The reason electric cars catch fire easily while charging
Due to low specification and high penetration of electric vehicles, many small manufacturers do not care about cost, and electric vehicles they produce may have defects, for example, a mismatch between rated current of circuit and connectors. , and improper handling of connectors and connectors, uneven laying of lines, etc. This design, which saves time and money, is a major cause of electric vehicle fires.
In addition to defects in EV itself, EV fire is related to EV charging environment, owner's usage habits, and EV material.Battery failure.
The fire hazard of electric vehicles is high
The EV itself is heavy, inconvenient to move up and down, and not suitable for outdoor storage, so many EV owners usually store their EVs in corridors, hallways, corridors, stairwells, lower rooms, etc. When electric vehicles are charged indoors on ground floor of a building, in event of a fire, flames and thick smoke block safe exits and escape routes from building, which can easily lead to loss of life or even a fire.
Experiments have shown that after an electric car ignites, temperature reaches 200 °C 90 seconds after ignition, and fire develops rapidly in an instant. The highly toxic gas produced by an electric car is enough to suffocate hundreds of people. The time left for passengers to escape is less than you think.
How to prevent electric car fires
1. When buying qualified electric vehicles from big-name manufacturers, don't be greedy for cheapness and don't use batteries privately.
2. Do not charge overnight. The vast majority of fires when charging electric vehicles occur within 4 hours of charging, so charging instructions must be strictly followed and, in principle, not continuously charged for more than 10 hours.
3. The charger plug is wet, which can easily cause a short circuit. In rainy or humid weather, check charging interface before charging.
4. For charging line, appropriate wire diameter should be selected. The line laying should be fixed and installed, and short circuit and leakage protection devices should be installed.
