Energy storage cabinet safety test plan

One gap in current safety assessments is that validation tests are performed on new products under laboratory conditions, and do not reflect changes that can occur in service or as the product ages. Figure 4. Increasing safety certainty earlier in the energy storage development cycle. 8. Summary of Gaps

Under the Energy Storage Safety Strategic Plan, developed with the support of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability Energy Storage Program by Pacific Northwest Laboratory and Sandia National Laboratories, an Energy Storage Safety initiative has been underway since July 2015.

Since the publication of the first Energy Storage Safety Strategic Plan in 2014, there have been introductions of new technologies, new use cases, and new codes, standards, regulations, and testing methods. Additionally, failures in deployed energy storage systems (ESS) have led to new emergency response best practices.

Until existing model codes and standards are updated or new ones are developed and then adopted, one seeking to deploy energy storage technologies or needing to verify the safety of an installation may be challenged in trying to apply currently implemented CSRs to an energy storage system (ESS).

A framework is provided for evaluating issues in emerging electrochemical energy storage technologies. The report concludes with the identification of priorities for advancement of the three pillars of energy storage safety: 1) science-based safety validation, 2) incident preparedness and response, 3) codes and standards.

The main safety concerns with thermal energy storage are all heat-related. Good thermal insulation is needed to reduce heat losses as well as to prevent burns and other heat-related injuries. Molten salt storage requires consideration of the toxicity of the materials and difficulty of handling corrosive fluids.