What causes laptop batteries to overheat?
In conjunction with the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), Dell and Apple Computer announced large recalls of laptop batteries in the summer of 2006, followed by Toshiba and Lenovo. Sony manufactured all of the recalled batteries, and in October 2006, the company announced its own large-scale recall. Under the right circumstances, these batteries could overheat, potentially causing burns, an explosion or a fire.
To understand why that happened, it's helpful to know a little bit about how batteries work. Batteries have a negatively charged terminal and a positively charged terminal. In a battery, energy from electrochemical reactions causes electrons (negatively charged particles) to collect at the battery's negatively charged pole. Charged particles are attracted to opposite charge, so if you connect a battery to a circuit, the electrons will flow from the negative pole, through the circuit and to the battery's positively charged pole. In other words, the battery generates a moving charge, or electricity.
In addition to laptops and other electronic devices, lithium-ion batteries are used in electric cars. However, these batteries are less likely to catch fire due to numerous safety precautions, including cooling and automatic shutdown systems.
These Apple iBook and PowerBook laptop batteries were also part of the recall.
If the battery gets hot through use or recharging, the pieces of metal can move around, much like grains of rice in a pot of water. If a piece of metal gets too close to the separator, it can puncture the separator and cause a short circuit. There are a few possible scenarios for what can go wrong in the case of a short circuit:
- If it creates a spark, the flammable liquid can ignite, causing a fire.
- If it causes the temperature inside the battery to rise rapidly, the battery can explode due to the increased pressure.
- If it causes the temperature to rise slowly, the battery can melt, and the liquid inside can leak out.
There are several reasons why multiple laptop battery models have been recalled in the past few years. People want small, lightweight laptops that they can use for long periods. They also want their laptops to have bright screens and lots of processing power. For these reasons, laptop batteries have to be relatively small, but they also have to hold a lot of energy and last a long time.
Making lithium-ion batteries that can hold more power for a longer period requires vital components, including the separators, to be small and thin. The reduction in size makes it more likely that the batteries can fail, break, leak or short circuit.
Check out the next page for more information, including how to determine if the recall affects your laptop.
Compaq Presario V5000 series Laptop Battery
Li-ion, 10.80V, 8800.00mAh
Fits Compaq Laptop Battery PN: 367759-001, 367760-001, 383492-001, 383493-001, 391883-001, 394275-001, 396601-001, 398065-001, 398832-001, EG414AA, EG415AA, PB995A, PF723A
SONY BP-90 Camcorder Battery
Li-ion, 6600.00mAh, 14.40V
Fits Sony Camcorder Battery PN: BP-65H, BP-90, BP-GL65, BP-GL95, BP-IL75, BP-L40, BP-L40A, BP-L60, BP-L60A, BP-L60S, BP-L80S, BP-L90, BP-L90A.
Fits IDX Camcorder Battery PN: BP-65H, E-50S, E-70S, E-7S, E-80, E-80S, NP-25N, NP-L50, NP-L50S
Read the other related article>>
Buy a Laptop Battery the Smart Way
How Many Cells Are In A Laptop Battery
Battery and Electric
Battery Acid Spill Containment
Choosing a Power Drill
How to Using a Power Drill
PDA Use in Health Care
How to Fix a Broken Laptop
How to Find Your Laptop's Brand and Model
What is a Short Circuit?
Cocktails to Power up Your Batteries
The World's Most Dangerous Battery
Battery Arrangement and Power
How do the battery testers on battery packages work
Why Do Batteries seem to go dead and then come back to life if you let them rest?
Cordless Drill With Li-ion Batteries
Testing Cordless Drill Batteries
What causes laptop batteries to overheat?
Tips to Keep Your Laptop Battery in Good Working Condition
How to Maximize Cordless Drill Battery Performance?
4 Step to Improve a Cordless Drill Battery!
How Can I Revive an 18V Drill Battery?
Can I use my old Ni-Cd battery charger to charge my Ni-MH batteries?
Should I Remove the Laptop Battery For A Desktop Replacement Laptop?
5 Laptop Battery Maintenance Tips
Introduction to How Lithium-ion Batteries Work.
Inside a Lithium-ion Battery Pack and Cell.
Lithium-ion Battery Life and Death.
Laptop AC Adapter Stopped Working, What shall I do.
