Lithium Ion Batteries - Batteries, when they leave you feeling negative

The country is going through a seismic shift in its approach to renewable energy, with an increased focus on the provision by way of electric & battery power.

There have been a number of high profile fires involving lithium Ion batteries and as such, the insurance market should be alive to this emerging risk and its associated perils.

The presentation will give an overview of batteries, what they are and the different types. Lithium-ion batteries will then be covered in more detail, discussing how they are constructed, what the batteries are used for and what the possible failure modes (including incendive) are.

Learning Objectives

To understand:

The different types of batteries

How they work and,

Why failures occur and the probable outcomes

Speaker Biography

Wayne, a chartered mechanical engineer and Whitworth scholar, began his engineering career at Rolls-Royce. He undertook various engineering and programme management roles working with gas turbines for civil and defence aerospace equipment.

In 2013, Wayne joined Hawkins and Associates as a fire, explosion and engineering investigator. He completed over 600 forensic investigations regarding scientific and technical matters of interest to the insurance and legal professions and has prepared numerous CPR compliant reports and has given evidence as an expert witness in both civil and Criminal Court cases.

In 2021, Wayne joined BAE Systems and was seconded to the Ministry of Defence as the deputy chief engineer, explosives safety on the Dreadnought submarine programme. In 2022, he joined the EFI Global team as a principal forensic investigator covering fires, explosions and engineering incidents.