No, I’m not writing about a store that you buy stuff in and can trust, I’m talking about a place that you store electricity in and contains little or no liquid. Lithium-Ion batteries have already revolutionized everything from portable electronics, to electric vehicles, and most recently, massive battery energy storage systems (BESS) that can store (very) useful amounts of electric energy (MW-Hours) for the grid. However, these batteries are not perfect, they are very picky about charging and discharging rates, and don’t even think about (accidentally or otherwise) piercing their outer casing.
There is also an interesting little slow (and sometimes not very slow) disaster that befalls them called “thermal runaway” (which gives you a clue as to what you should be doing if you are nearby), really bad things happen with any of these events. If you don’t believe me, read a paper I posted earlier this year and reference in this paper (also, see the image below).
