Safety of lithium batteries in transportation

UN Document [“Recommendations on the Transport of Dangerous Goods Manual of Tests and Criteria”, 3rd Revised Edition, 1999] outlines a test plan that is fundamental to the classification for transport of lithium batteries with metallic lithium, lithium alloy or lithium-ion intercalation electrodes. The tests can be divided into two categories: safety tests (internal and external short circuit, forced-over-discharge, charge) and environmental tests (reduced pressure, thermal, vibration and shock). These safety tests are intended to assess known unsafe behavior in abusive circumstances.