The Safety Reinforced Layer (SRL) is a composite material that changes its electrical resistance based on temperature, acting as a “fuse” that blocks the flow of electricity in the early stages of overheating, the company said in a statement.
LG Chem completed safety verification tests for the SRL material in mobile batteries in partnership with its affiliate LG Energy Solution, the country’s leading car battery maker, it said.
In both battery impact and penetration tests, the batteries equipped with the SRL either didn’t catch fire at all or extinguished the flames shortly after they appeared, preventing a full-blown thermal runaway event, the company said.
“This is a tangible research achievement that can be applied to mass production in a short period of time,” LG Chem Chief Technology Officer Lee Jong-ku said. “We will enhance safety technology to ensure customers can use EVs with confidence and contribute to strengthening our competitiveness in the battery market.”
The research findings were published online in the September edition of Nature Communications, one of the world’s renowned scientific journals.
The company said it will continue safety testing for large-capacity EV batteries until next year.
Currently, sales of battery-powered vehicles remain weak amid the EV chasm, which occurs before the widespread adoption of pure electric cars.
On Aug. 1, an imported EV exploded in an apartment underground parking lot in Incheon, burning or damaging about 140 cars. Days later, a fire broke out in a parked EV in Geumsan, South Chungcheong.
Carmakers selling EVs in Korea are now required to disclose the brand information of batteries used in their EVs following the incidents.
BY PARK EUN-JEE, YONHAP [park.eunjee@joongang.co.kr]
