Laptop Batteries Are Linked to Fire Risk

Like many people, Mark Bringer, a math professor at Newton, Massachusetts, says Catherine Greenman March 2001.
He has been relying on his laptop to help him keep up with his work while traveling.
So last fall, he traveled to his holiday home in Maine with Dell Lingyue 3800.
But one morning, sir.
Bridger and his wife were in the garden, and they noticed that he had put the computer in the living room, a bookcase in the corner was on fire, and the smoke began to fill their living room.
The firefighters arrived in time to save the house.
But while the fire appeared to be a strange accident at the beginning, the representative from the gentleman conducted an investigation
Bridger\'s insurance company, consumer product safety board, and Dell computer found that it originated
Bridger\'s computer.
Investigators concluded that the computer was too close to the wood.
The burning stove and its lithium
The ion battery is overheating and on fire.
Now, lithium.
Almost all high batteries use ion batteries.
Terminal laptops, most cameras and many newer wireless phones. Theyhave built-
In circuits that monitor heat accumulation and voltage, charging, and other indicators, if a problem is detected, it means turning off the battery.
Advertising manufacturers and safety experts say there are very few cases where the battery is overheating, smoking or causing a fire.
However, due to the potential danger of this battery, some PC manufacturers have recalled portable computers.
On October, Dell recalled 27,000 Latitude and Inspiron laptops after receiving a computer fire report.
This problem is related to the metal sheet found in laptop\'s lithium.
Ion batteries that may cause a short circuit of the battery (manufactured by Sanyo)
Circuit and fire.
In the same month, Compaq recalled 55,000 Armada laptops.
The ion battery in the fleet is short.
Be short-circuited and smoke.
In 1995, Apple recalled the PowerBook 5300 model after the electrolyte in lithium
The ion battery is on fire. Lithium-
Ion batteries can produce four volts or four times the power of nickel metal hydrogen batteries, which were used in most laptops until a few years ago.
While producing more energy, lithium
The ion battery is also smaller and lighter than the nickel metal hydrogen battery, so it generates more heat and is more sensitive to it. Lithium-
Ion batteries are also different from other types of rechargeable batteries because their electrolyte is not soluble in water and the electrolyte is the medium in which lithium ions move from one electrode to another during charging.
This makes it easier for them to be short.
If exposed to a humid environment, cycle than a nickel metal hydrogen battery.
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After the fire, sir.
Bridger said he has expressed concern to Dell that Dell\'s user manual is not clear enough about the harm of getting the laptop too close to the heat source.
\"They should warn in the manual not to keep the laptop away from the radiator, stove or fire less than 3 feet,\" he said . \".
Dell computer spokesman Tom Kehoe said consumers who follow the instructions in the user manual should not have a lithium overheating problemion batteries.
\"There is a suggested temperature range where you should be negative-
\"14 degrees Fahrenheit, 140 degrees Fahrenheit,\" he said . \"
\"These figures are clearly stated in the manual.
\"Norm England, chairman of the trade group portable rechargeable batteries Association, warned consumers not to use lithium-
Ion batteries made of ordinary batteries
Packaging fitters instead of names-
Brands such as Sony, Panasonic and Sanyo.
Although some namesbrand lithium-
Ion batteries were involved in the product recall, he said.
England says the number of incidents prompting recalls is relatively small compared to millions of lithium
Ion batteries produced every year.
Ordinary batteries may not have been made, he said --
Safety features or certifications of the insurer\'s laboratory.
But since most lithium batteries in the US come from major manufacturers, I don\'t see any reason to worry, he said.
\"Advertising is still Jim jester, computer consultant and professional computer service owner at Woodlands, Texas.
He said manufacturers could take more measures to warn consumers of preventive measures.
\"Modern lithium
\"Ions do get warmer, and people have bad habits, like putting laptops on beds and piles of paper while the battery is charging,\" he said . \".
He says his Motorola StarTac wireless phone uses lithium
Ion battery, which tends to overheat when he lets it charge in the polyurethane case.
\"Sometimes, I worry that it will melt the inside of the box, which is enough,\" he said . \". Mr.
Jester advises not to charge the wireless phone or laptop in the car when the weather is warm.
\"The safety switch may fail, it is dangerous to charge in a warm room, or to heat the charge in the car,\" he said . \".
\"Manufacturers can mention more about not getting these things too hot.
On March 15, the article in the circuit about the fire hazard of the laptop battery incorrectly mentioned two types of power output ---
Lithium ion and nickel metal salt.
The output depends on the volume of the battery relative to the discharge rate.
The output of the lithium ion battery is not necessarily four times that of the nickel metal hydrogen battery, nor is it necessarily measured in volts.
Due to editing errors, this article also incorrectly explains the greater heat generated by lithium-ion batteries.
Heat is a function of energy capacity relative to volume or weight--
Not just volume or weight.
We are constantly improving the quality of text archives.
Please send feedback, error reports, and suggestions to archid_feedback @ nytimes. com.
A version of this article appears on page G00003, national edition, March 15, 2001, with the title: laptop batteries are associated with fire risk.