A new white paper has been published by Siemens highlighting the challenges and, importantly, potential solutions, in protecting garages containing electric vehicles from the threat of fire. Given that electric vehicles in parking garages are still a relative newcomer in fire safety terms, most countries are still grappling with the relevant norms and standards. As such, the response to these applications is still in the development stages. One factor which is very much at the forefront of the responses thus far is ‘thermal runaway’ – the rapid increase in temperature caused by the release of stored chemical energy in the event of an electric vehicle (EV) battery fire.
The key elements are fast detection and effective suppression, thereby avoiding multi-vehicle fires that could threaten the building stability.
The paper has been co-written with Danfoss Fire Safety A/S, a pioneer in high pressure water mist firefighting, with contributions also from the Danish Institute of Fire and Security Technology (DBI), the internationally renowned leading knowledge centre in the field of fire safety and security in Denmark.
This white paper focusses on fire risks in EV parking garages, protection targets, EV garage, fire detection, suppression testing and protection concepts.
