Fraudulent Lithium-Ion Batteries Dangerous, Deadly For Consumers

First death reported from Lithium-Ion battery.

May 18, 2018, Los Angeles, CA – Fraudulent and fake Lithium Ion ("Li-Ion") batteries are proving to be a unique hazard, a dangerous and deadly risk for consumers.

The first reported death from a Li-Ion battery was reported by the Pinellas County (Florida) Medical Examiner's office Wednesday. The 38 year-old Florida man died earlier this month when an e-cigarette device exploded causing a "projectile wound to the head," and burning 80% of his body. The home had extensive fire damage.

Between March 1991 and May 2017, 160 air/airport incidents involving lithium battery fires and smoke, carried as cargo or baggage, have been recorded. Three major aircraft accidents were reported where lithium battery cargo shipments were implicated, but not proven to be the source of the fire. Research from The Counterfeit Report is available for criminal investigators to determine if additional Li-Ion battery stocks may endangering the public.

A quick online search of Amazon (AMZN), eBay, (EBAY) and Walmart (WLMT) will show thousands of suspect "18650" batteries, the lithium-ion battery frequently used in laptops, flashlights, cameras, battery packs, hoverboards, e-cigarettes and many other consumer devices.

Most of the listings highlight the energy capacity in milli-amp hours (mAh) of the battery being offered; typical listings vary from 2,500 mAh to 6,000 mAh. Many consumers will gravitate to the higher capacity batteries incorrectly believing they will gain the longest use. Unfortunately, many of these claims are unsubstantiated, misleading or completely fraudulent. Authentic 18650 batteries from legitimate manufacturers have capacities under 4000mAh. The space inside the case of every 18650 battery for the battery components is the same, and the capacity varies considerably depending on the current draw.

The 18650 Li-Ion Batteries offered below on e-commerce websites make wild capacity claims. 18650 batteries purchased and tested by The Counterfeit Report were only a fraction of the stated claim.

Similarly, many online listings will claim that a battery is "protected" or "has protection," implying protection against overcharging, overheating, or other deleterious events. While the manufacturer may (or may not) be placing a protection circuit in the battery, there is generally little technical information available about this "protection" that consumers could identify, access or rely on.

Responsible battery and e-cigarette manufacturers are working hard to develop remedies for the known lithium-ion battery failures. Unfortunately, legitimate manufacturers cannot control what modifications are made by fake or fraudulent replacement battery manufacturers, or modifications by consumers. Salvaged lithium-ion batteries from old laptop computers or power tool battery packs are recycled and re-labeled in China with wild capacity claims and cheap prices. Few understand that such batteries rarely have protective circuitry built in, since robust protective circuitry is typically integrated into a battery pack or device.

The use of Li-Ion batteries is also revealing a previously unrecognized hazardous condition -- electronic cigarette and battery explosions in the users face and pockets. No other consumer product places a battery with a known explosion hazard such as this in such close proximity to the human body. "E-cigarette" is used generically to refer to any or all e-cigarettes, e-cigs, personal vaporizers (PVs), electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS), mods, or similar devices. E-cigarettes are sometimes used to smoke hash oil or "honey oil", a cannabis product derived by separating the resins from marijuana. Separating hash oil from marijuana is a hazardous process, sometimes done illegally in hotels and homes, presenting additional risks to first-responders. No current regulation, code, or law applies to the safety of the electronics or batteries in e-cigarettes.

Hundreds of reported e-cigarette fire and explosion incidents in the U.S. can be found, including acute injuries, meaning that the victim required hospitalization and may have suffered loss of a body part. For example;

• July 2013 - Charging in car led to a "blowtorch" fire and explosion causing second degree burns to the occupant's upper thighs and buttocks.
• Sept 2013 - Charging in car caused an explosion igniting a baby seat resulting in first and second degree burns to a 3-year-old.
• Dec 2013 - Failure while charging on laptop USB port ignited bedding, causing second degree burns on the occupant's leg and foot.
• Apr 2014 - Vape blew up in users face resulting in Dime-sized hole in the roof of his mouth, burns to hand, a fractured neck and finger, burns to cornea, and damaged teeth.
• Feb 2015 - e-cigarette exploded in victims face causing second degree burns to face, ear and neck, also broken cheekbone and concussion.

A 2017 report by FEMA and the U.S. Fire Administration concludes that "Lithium-ion batteries should not be used in e-cigarettes. While the number of batteries that explode and catch fire is statistically small, the catastrophic nature of the injuries that can occur warrants the use of another battery technology for e-cigarettes."

References:

FEMA Report, US Fire Administration ("USFA"),
NFIRSGram: Coding an electronic cigarette fire, https://www.usfa.fema.gov/data/nfirs/support/nfirsgrams/nfirsgram_electronic_cigarettes.html
July 2017

Underwriters Laboratories (UL) has developed standards that relate to lithium-ion battery safety. These standards are applied to products containing batteries that undergo UL safety testing. In early 2017, UL promulgated UL Standard 8139, Electrical Systems of Electronic Cigarettes, which evaluates only the battery and electrical controls of an electronic cigarette.