I don’t want lithium-ion alternatives for better range. Quite the opposite, I’m actually okay having slightly less range if it means my car won’t spontaneously combust. This one apparently improves the safety of lithium-ion batteries too, so it’s great, but I hate when headlines focus on one thing that matters the least.

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giobox 3 hours ago | parent | next [-]

> Quite the opposite, I’m actually okay having slightly less range if it means my car won’t spontaneously combust.

Modern LFP LiIon (LiFePO4) batteries are pretty damn safe now, and is also the dominant chemistry in new EV batteries and energy storage systems. The fire risk is nothing like what it was, arguably your wish has already been granted.

The Chinese market is mandating this year that EV batteries prevent fire or explosion for a minimum of 2hrs after a cell enters thermal runaway, and LFP is the main driver to achieve it.

	▲	sedatk 3 hours ago \| parent [-]
		True, but they are not as common as they should be.

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hgomersall 3 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

Do you worry about spontaneous combustion of ICE cars? They are far more likely to burst into flames than EVs.

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apparent 3 hours ago | parent | next [-]

Is this true when adjusting for vehicle age? The average age of an EV is quite a bit lower than the average age of an ICE vehicle, and I assume there is at least some correlation between a vehicle's age and how likely it is to explode (based on degradation, type of use, type of owner, etc.).

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sedatk 3 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

> They are far more likely to burst into flames than EVs.

There’s a substantial increased risk only with ICE cars that are at least 10 years old and poorly maintained. Li-ion EVs carry that risk from day one.

	▲	NickM 2 hours ago \| parent [-]
		Neither EVs nor ICE cars spontaneously combust unless there's a design flaw. Even when this happens it tends to be very rare, but the Chevy Bolt fires for example were fixed with a recall. Similarly a Ford recall last year fixed a problem where fuel injectors could leak and cause an engine fire. EVs and ICE cars can both catch on fire in a bad enough accident, but this is true regardless of the age of the vehicle, and tends to be more sudden and violent with gasoline explosions vs battery fires.