Power Bar: EE was warned of safety risk BEFORE user was burned in explosion EE management was warned that its popular "Power Bar" phone charging devices had serious safety risks before they were given to customers, the Register has learned. A Power Bar subsequently exploded, injuring a young woman badly enough that she required hospital treatment, and some Power Bars have since been recalled. Last …
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I forgot to mention - in this case, EE themselves value the power bar at £30 in the 'hire agreement' they make you agree to. That's how much you're liable for if you break or lose it and theoretically they want them all back after the 18 months is up or if you stop being an EE customer.
Surely a £30 2400mAh battery pack is built from the best quality materials?
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In my case - my phone used to live in an Otterbox case, they seem to dislike repeated removal of the front plastic panel for access, I now have a Griffin Defender case, same thing, built to hold the phone securely and safely, not designed to faff around with to change batteries. It depends to some extent on where you are
Not everyone works wholly in a nice office environment and the downside of the smartphone is its relative fragility compared to the old mars bar models, My old 6230i was almost indestructible, except for when exposed to a .5 litre mug full of hot sweet tea, but in terms of impact resistance it was great, and didn't need recharging so often - heavy smartphone use "in the field" can mean these things are too handy not to have.
Slightly sensationalist story and headline (as usual). Considering what *might* go wrong with a product is part and parcel of any product launch. That's only the first step. It certainly doesn't mean ""EE was warned!! OMG!!!".
What matters is the residual risk that was left *after* mitigating actions (if any) were taken. If you've got evidence that the product was launched without dealing with the risks, then you might have a story. Simply listing the potential risks (as you've done in this article) doesn't mean a damn thing.
That's like slamming a car manufacturer for a car crash because "OMFG, they *knew* from the outset that cars can crash!!!"
Duh.
How would they not know the age of the power bars though? Presumably, these things have a serial number on them. It would be trivial to keep a database of serial number vs issue date and withdraw them when they reach a given age. You could easily keep other data such as number of times returned, charge level and time to charge, etc.
I'm not an EE customer, so I don't know if this is the case, but presumably, they have some sort of way of checking these things in and out, so they know who has one?
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You could easily keep other data such as number of times returned, charge level and time to charge, etc.
You also need to monitor G-forces, maximum heat reached so far, whether someone used a hammer on the battery... actually a S.M.A.R.T. battery interface. Best add X-ray imaging checks at the store. As there are still doubts how these sticks of dynamitebatteries evolve over time, it's an interesting little problem.
"Presumably, these things have a serial number on them"
Nope, they don't (at least not on the outside). There might be a number on a label inside, but the devices appear to be sealed and they can't be checked (unless you want to damage the item and have to pay for it at the end of the 18 month loan period).
I would imagine there isn't a way to tell via USB what the serial number might be....as that would surely add $$'s to the prime cost - though it would help EE to ascertain which Power bars were still serviceable.
One hair-raising quote from the report is a concern about the variable quality of the power cells. Eeek!
Were they fishing them off the floor of random factories round China, and just shoving them into the power bars or something?
It is hard to assess with the limited information available. We have to rely that El Reg aren't quoting the report horribly out of context, or haven't been had by some internal leaker who's only giving them half the information.
In general, my experience of El Reg is that they do tend to quote in context. They strike me as reasonably honest, even if they do have a weakness for an exciting headline - and they will twist people's words in order to get a good pun...
On the other side though, we have to rely on the management of EE not to be arses.
Any lithium cell gets warm when charging or discharging. Said cell also releases hydrogen when charing or discharging, and this is where the fire risk comes from as the rate of hydrogen emission goes up with heat until it reaches such a point that you get a self sustaining reaction of hydrogen being released, which is the thermal runaway referenced in the risk assesment. Since hydrogen ignites when it reaches sufficant pressure, this is where venting with fire and a hydrogen explosion comes from. Hydrogen fires can be slightly hot and tend to cause things around them to burn as well.
This is made worse by manufacturers apparently completely ignoring the safety requirements on the MSDS of lithium based batteries (the need for vents and not installing it in an enclosed container is a listed requirement iirc, which appears to be violated on virtually every mobile)
In case the fire wasn't enough, a lithium "terrorist" cell will also release hydrofloric acid when the seals break. Don't breathe this in or get any on you. For general reference, safety requirements for cleaning the stuff up include full body protection in a hazmat suit with an independent air supply, not merely filtering with a gas mask. It's not nice stuff, apparently.
Risks are mitigated though not pushing or pulling too much out of the cells, having good quality cells and also having protection cutouts that brick the battery if things are getting dangerous. It would seem that all three points have been overlooked in this case...
Anyone who has ever experienced a hydrogen fire can also tell you that they are extra fun, since, when small at least, they're pretty much invisible - there's no smoke, and the flame is colourless in the visible spectrum. The first indication you'd normally get is when they set something else on fire, or set a heat-detector fire alarm off.
Lithium cells are at risk of thermal runaway due to deposition of lithium metal within the cell, which can be caused by overheating, overcharge, over-discharge, charging below 0 Celsius, or mechanical damage. The venting gas is a mixture of Hydrogen and CO2, and smaller amounts of CO, CH4, C2H4, and C2H6 due to high temperature reactions of the cell chemicals. Hydrogen ignites when it reaches sufficient temperature in the presence of oxygen, but that temperature is caused by the thermal runaway within the cell.
http://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2013/ra/c3ra45748f
To meet EC regulations, the cells must have electronic protection against charging below 0 Celsius or too high a temperature, overcharging, and over-discharging. Cells in series must have cell balancing circuitry. Has anyone done a tear-down and verified that the EE power bars have this protection circuitry?
"To meet EC regulations"
Can you provide a specific reference to these regulations? Happy to take it on trust, always happier if there's a direct source.
Mage mentioned the CE regs but I'd be very surprised if there was anything specific in there re battery safety. There might be something relating to the safe disposal of batteries but that's not quite the same.
Thanks.
<blockquote>Lithium cells are at risk of thermal runaway due to deposition of lithium metal within the cell, which can be caused by overheating, overcharge, over-discharge, charging below 0 Celsius, or mechanical damage.</blockquote>I think you missed "Looking at them a bit funny" .....
I know a little about batteries without being an expert and this post is nonsense. Lithium cells do not normally outgass on charging or discharging. They can when mistreated and outgassing should be considered in risk management but it is not a given and depends on the specific Lithium battery chemistry used. The presence of fluorine depends on the electrolyte used so Hydrofluoric acid may or may not be posisble but this will only occur if the battery catches fire. There are usually multiple means to prevent this occuring and the fire itself is a significant hazard so it is not clear that this makes a real difference. The safety devices in the battery do not necessarily brick the battery when for example it is short circuited but do disconnect it until the short circuit is removed.
All this story shows is that EE did the right thing in reviewing possible hazards and control methds., Only if they took no action, or inadequate actions to control a risk should they be blamed. The fact they have performed a recall after a small (one?) incident with a very high number of units suggets that they should be commended.
"Said cell also releases hydrogen when charing or discharging"
The fun part about current lithium batteries is that when overcharged they precipitate out metallic lithium as well as venting.
Water and lithium don't mix and guess what people will attempt put a fire out with.
WRT HFl: nasty stuff. Peter2 is understating how dangerous it is. Seriously. If you get a drop on your hand you'll probably lose your arm.
>"WRT HFl: nasty stuff. Peter2 is understating how dangerous it is. Seriously. If you get a drop on your hand you'll probably lose your arm."
I'm not a chemist and my knowledge comes from reading the material safety data sheet, but I think that's 100% pure hydroflouric acid. When lithium cells vent though, I suspect that it's at lower concentrations so it shouldn't be immediately fatal although the fact that it's vapourised and comes out in smoke means that people are likely to breathe it in, so direct exposure to the lungs which is kind of suboptimal. Like anybody with the slightest knowledge of the stuff i'm still avoiding it though.
"Water and lithium don't mix and guess what people will attempt put a fire out with."
CO2 extinguishers, followed by powder. Even most users wouldn't use water given the warning signs on/next to the extinguishers.
Since hydrogen ignites when it reaches sufficant (sic) pressure....
You better tell that to the manufacturers of hydrogen-powered vehicles, then. They store hydrogen at up to 700 bar (according to http://www.hse.gov.uk/research/rrpdf/rr615.pdf).
I have a feeling that these little boxes would fracture before reaching even that pressure, meaning that this process is a bit unlikely in igniting them.
"They get warm when discharging also..Thought think they are rated at 2600,
Most phones have at least a higher rated battery that drains this hence it gets very warm.."
I still use a Samsung S2, which uses a 1650mAh battery (of which i have 2 so I can swap batteries during the day).
I got a Power Bar a couple of months ago, Model E1-01 rated at 2600mAh and it saves me time swapping batteries....and I can confirm that it does get warm while re-charging the phone. :(
It's effectively a battery which charges a battery.
Here's an idea: get a spare battery. It's smaller and easier to carry around.
The main use case for these chargers seems to be for people who can't survive without updating their Instagram every 5 mins or tweeting about which coffee shop they're in. Not saying they deserve to get burnt though.
The main use case for these chargers seems to be for people who can't survive without updating their Instagram every 5 mins or tweeting about which coffee shop they're in.
My partner has a portable charger battery (not an EE one). She has it because her phone has no removable battery, and a crappy battery life (less than a day if she uses Wi-Fi or GPS). It has bugger-all to do with the pointless social-media bleating that some people do, but is because sometimes she wants to use the features of her phone, such as using the GPS to measure exercise, using Google to look something up, or $deity forbid, make a phone call.
Funny my use case is keeping my phone working while away from power for more than a day... say, camping... or whilst walking up a mountain - or a combination of the two.
I know your going to come back and say something along the lines of "Cant you live without your phone for a few days" and the answer would be "yes" but realistically why would I?
The phone provides me with a camera, with decent video capability, GPS, entertainment when its starts pissing down and the tent comes out and in the event that something goes wrong it *MIGHT* useful to communicate with someone that can help *
* I say might because obviously in the middle of nowhere its not going to work - but for alot of places they do work.
That said, the charger described in the article doesnt really fit this case either because youre lucky to get one full charge out of it!
That used to work. Then manufacturers started struggling to meet consumer demands for ever-thinner phones. When you need to make them no more than a few mm thick or they won't sell, anything that adds thickness must be cut. That includes removable batteries - which require the thickness of plastic each side of the cell and an extra removable back cover on the phone. Consumers may like replacable batteries, but not enough to accept an extra 2mm thickness.
Why not just buy an offical spare battery for your handset, or a decent quality USB power supply?
Why do you think that "official" parts are better quality? There have been plenty of original laptop batteries recalled by OEMs, and I recently had to replace an original Samsung phone battery after it started getting warm and growing in size after less than a year's use.
Seems to me that Li-ion batteries are an inherently risky technology. A very low inherent risk in the main, but if makers can make them fail-safe, they choose not to (or OEMs won't pay the premium required).
Seems to me that EE are simply taking their rightful place in the alphabetic and years long list of lithium battery pain, between Apple, Boeing, Compaq, Dell, Fujitsu, Gateway, HP, IBM, Lenovo.......
Inherently unstable is actually true in a literal sense, the battery is eating itself up chemically after being manufactured, and will explode under use eventually.
Through limiting the temperature, current and voltage to specific limits, the point of explosion can be pushed to far beyond the battery's useful life.
Contaminations during manufacture typically shrink the safe temperature, voltage and current windows, making the safe windiw smaller than what the electronics is tuned for. The battery eventually reaches the point of explosion before it gets discarded as useless.
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"At least with the S4, if the battery span freely when placed flat on a table and spun, (that was the official test apparently), they would replace it under warranty."
That is a useful piece of advice - I've just checked my S2 batteries and one shows a slight bulge in the centre...so maybe it needs to be scrapped before it "blows". Thanks for the tip. :-)
The problem is the CE mark is now useless. It needs scrapped and a new mark:
1) The ! isn't good enough to indicate non-universal EU. If it isn't universal EU, no mark.
2) Must be 3rd party tested for safety, EMI, RFI, compliance with advertising claims and other regulator features, in REALISTIC and WORSE case scenarios. Actually connected and in use, not just plugged in etc.
3) Must have random sample inspection from Retail. Otherwise makers will cheat and ship cheaper different thing to what is shipped.
4) Non-compliance Fines that seriously hurt. Levelled against Maker and importer.
5) Compensation to Retail and Consumers
6) Serial number (barcode or RFID) read a time of sale. No need to have receipt or be original purchaser to claim rights for failure under SOGA, as many items are now never returned. EU database so you can return to ANY shop and Wholesale + Maker has to pay costs. It's unfairly on Retailer at present. Retailers can't test.
7) Fine and loss of Mark if the failure rate inside SOGA period is too high
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"EU database so you can return to ANY shop and Wholesale + Maker has to pay costs"
I don't think that I understand what you mean by that.. If your saying what I think your saying then you don't know how retail businesses work.
Retailer X isn't going to give me some of THEIR stock if I take them something that I bought from retailer Y because that means that they wont be able to sell it. Even if they will eventually get their money back from the manufacturer they will only get the cost back - not the profit that they potentially lost from not having he item on sale,
Then you have the issue that not all retailers will pay the same price per unit from the manufacturer how much does the retailer get back from the manufacturer? the cost of their stock or the cost that the original retailer paid for the item?
Next issue is that if I buy say a phone from apple... Can I then take that back to Asda for an exchange if it stops working? What happens if I take the phone back to asda exchange it and then when they send it back to apple they realise that ive dropped it down the toilet and dried it out and its not covered by warranty?
With point 6 it seems to me like you are trying to solve a problem that doesn't exist.
Loads of items already have serial numbers that the manufacturers can tie to an item, you don't need a receipt... Case in point : I was given an old (1st gen) iPod nano to use at the gym because I kept dropping my phone. I promptly put the nano and my shorts in the wash, it didn't work when it came out.
Now I had NO receipt, the iPod wasn't new when the previous owner bought it and it was most definitely NOT going to be covered under any warranty however I did know that some of these iPods were recalled for (Drum Roll) Faulty batteries, so I phoned apple, gave them the serial number, they were able to tell me when it was bought when the warranty expired and that it was indeed covered by the recall 10 days later I have a brand new iPod Nano (64gb).
So really I dont think that we need to be trying to implement an EU wide database, we can already do most of what you are talking about - and the returning to any retailer is just mental!
PS, This nano is the only apple device that I own, I wouldn't have bought one off my own back, but I really cant fault apple for their service on this occasion, no complaints no mention that its clearly been washed in the machine just a "Yep its been recalled, we will send a courier to collect it and get your new one out to you"
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