External short circuit

Example

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Connect mechanisms with appropriate test evidence.

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Current interrupt device

A pressure-activated switch in the cap of a cylindrical cell. When internal pressure rises, usually from overcharge, a disc flips and permanently breaks the current path, removing the cell from the circuit before it vents.

Fuse

A link that melts and opens the circuit when current exceeds its rating. Packs use a main fuse in the high-voltage path and often a small fuse on each parallel cell connection, so one shorted cell does not drain its neighbours into the fault.

Internal short circuit

An unintended electronic path between the electrodes inside a cell — through a metal particle, a burr, a damaged separator or lithium deposits. It discharges the cell internally and turns its energy into local heat.

Positive temperature coefficient device

A polymer element in series with a cell whose resistance jumps when it heats, choking an external short-circuit current. It resets as it cools, unlike a fuse, but adds resistance and does not help against internal faults.

External short-circuit test

Connecting a charged cell’s terminals through a resistance of a few milliohms and recording temperature and outcome. The result depends as much on the cell’s own resistance and its protective devices as on its chemistry.

References & further reading

Further reading on this topic

These sources provide broader context; they are not presented as citations for every statement in this entry.

1. Thermal runaway mechanism of lithium ion battery for electric vehicles: A review

   Xuning Feng et al. · Energy Storage Materials · 2018

   Topic background · Electrical, mechanical and thermal abuse; thermal-runaway mechanisms and propagation.