Unraveling the Characteristics of ESS Fires in South Korea: An In-Depth Analysis of ESS Fire Investigation Outcomes

Abstract

Unlike traditional coal-powered energy generation, renewable energy sources do not generate carbon dioxide emissions. To enhance the efficiency of renewable energy systems, energy storage systems (ESSs) have been implemented. However, in South Korea, ESS fire incidents have emerged as a significant social problem. Consequently, a government-formed committee was established to investigate the cause of these fires through the analysis of the data collected from ESSs, stored in the battery management system (BMS) log data of the fire-resistant safe storage. In the first phase of the investigation, the committee was unable to identify the underlying characteristic of ESS fires. Nevertheless, in the second phase, the investigation committee could identify the key characteristics of ESS fires by analyzing the BMS log data. ESS fires were found to occur when the state of charge level was more than 95% and during the initiation of thermal runaway in specific cells. Despite these findings, the committee was unable to determine the root cause of ESS fires.