Why Battery Testing Lab Safety Is Non-Negotiable

Since the early 2000s, battery technology has advanced at remarkable speed. From

EV platforms to grid storage and consumer electronics, energy density has

increased, charge rates have accelerated, and performance expectations continue to

rise.

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Matthew Stringer, Battery Test Engineer & Tom Cleaver, CEO

​A prismatic battery cell undergoing thermal runaway

Behind every new battery innovation lies a critical and often underestimated reality.

Battery testing is inherently high risk and has the potential to be very dangerous.

Unlike many other laboratory environments, battery test labs work with concentrated

stored energy, volatile chemistries, and high-voltage systems often all at once. When

something goes wrong, it doesn’t fail quietly. It fails dramatically.

The Unique Risks of Battery Testing

Battery cells, modules, and packs are designed to store and release energy. Under

test conditions and when cells are intentionally pushed to their limits several serious

risks can arise:

• Thermal runaway leading to fire or explosion

• High-voltage exposure with fatal potential

• Toxic and flammable gas release

• Rapid cascading cell failures

These risks are manageable but only with the correct engineering controls, robust

procedures, and experienced staff. Battery test labs do not simply require good

laboratory practice they require specialist safety infrastructure and highly competent

personnel.

Why Robust Procedures and Risk Assessments Matter

Engineering controls such as fire suppression systems, blast-rated enclosures, gas

extraction, and electrical isolation are only one layer of protection. Robust

procedures and comprehensive risk assessments form the operational backbone of

a safe battery testing environment.

A thorough risk assessment:

• Identifies failure modes before testing begins

• Defines safe operating limits and emergency thresholds

• Establishes escalation protocols for abnormal behaviour

• Ensures correct PPE and isolation requirements are in place

• Reduces human error through clearly documented processes

Well developed and defined procedures standardise how tests are set up, monitored

and terminated. They ensure that every test from routine cycle life to destructive

abuse testing is conducted within predefined safety parameters.

Most importantly they transform reactive safety into proactive risk management.

Instead of responding to incidents laboratories anticipate them, design controls

around them and train personnel to act decisively if conditions deviate from the

norm.

In high energy environments consistency saves lives. Clear procedures reduce

ambiguity, risk assessments reduce uncertainty and together they significantly lower

the probability and severity of incidents.

Battery Failure Causes

Whether in use or in storage, cells must be handled, used, stored, and maintained

under carefully controlled conditions to ensure long-term stability and safety. Failure

to do so can significantly increase the risk of failure.

• Incorrect storage conditions

  Cells must be stored within defined upper and lower voltage limits to prevent

  chemical degradation defined by the cells datasheet. They should also be

  kept in a cool, dry and well ventilated environment away from heat sources.

  Improper storage can accelerate degradation and in cases lead to thermal

  runaway.

• Mechanical damage

  If a cell is dropped or physically damaged, it should be treated as

  compromised and safely disposed of. Damage can create internal short

  circuits which can result in immediate failure or delayed thermal events.

• Abusive operating conditions

  Cells that are being used in devices need to be kept in their operating window

  to prevent the internals becoming damaged. This should be taken care of by

  the circuitry that they are attached to, known as the Battery Management

  System (BMS). The BMS should ensure that the cells don’t get too hot, or

  charge (or discharge) too far or too fast and that they stay in the “goldilocks”

  zone at all times.

• Lack of routine monitoring

  Cells in storage should be checked regularly. Visual inspections should look

  for swelling, leakage, or deformation, while voltage checks confirm that cells

  remain within their safe storage range. Without routine monitoring, early

  warning signs of failure can easily be missed. Batteries should perform this

  function automatically via their BMS, requiring less intervention.

• Cell manufacturing defects

  Very occasionally, cells are built with manufacturing defects that can cause

  internal short circuits and then fires. These are very rare, because the most

  likely time that failure will occur is during production, so in the unlikely event of

  this occurring, the manufacturer should identify it and fix it before the cells

  reach users. The most recent major example of this was the Samsung Galaxy

  Note 7, in 2016.

• Battery pack design issues

  Sometimes, packs are designed that have inherent faults, which can lead to

  fires. A poorly designed pack would easily catch fire, while a well designed

  pack might need multiple different rare failures to occur at the same time to

  catch fire. This applies to both the mechanical design and the BMS

  design/safety parameters.

Many of these issues also depend on the precise chemistry of the cells. You may

well have heard of LFP, NMC, etc, and the behaviour of each of these types of

chemistry is different and the safe operating windows are different too. Sometimes

by a little, sometimes by a lot. Every battery design needs to take these factors into

account, which requires specialist understanding and knowledge.

When Outsourcing Makes Sense

For organisations whose core expertise is product development not battery cell

behaviour and testing, the question becomes practical:

Is maintaining a high risk, high compliance testing facility the best use of resources?

Cognition Energy is a specialist third-party cell testing laboratory with purpose built

facilities designed to manage these risks. Its facilities are engineered around

containment, compliance, and safety.

Outsourcing battery testing can:

• Reduce fire and liability exposure

• Avoid large capital infrastructure investments

• Provide independently validated, credible results

• Accelerate project timelines

• Allow internal teams to focus on innovation

For many organisations, the safest and quickest path forward isn’t building a battery

test lab, it's partnering with an expert who already operates one. This approach

removes significant operational risk and allows teams to concentrate on advancing

battery technology with confidence.

For further information or to discuss any cell testing requirements, email

info@cognitionenergy.uk and the team will be happy to assist.