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Within the wake of the latest hurricane that swept Florida after which went and wrecked decrease Appalachia, I got here throughout an fascinating social media publish from native authorities officers in Pinellas County, Florida. In it, we see the uncomfortable and harmful dying of a Tesla:
Electrical Autos which were flooded in saltwater can catch hearth. When you evacuated and left an electrical car or golf cart in your storage or beneath a constructing and you aren’t in a position to get to it or transfer it, we wish you to tell us. /1 pic.twitter.com/dpfiXRAGuR
— Pinellas County (@PinellasGov) September 28, 2024
When salt water acquired contained in the Tesla’s storage, it flooded the car. This didn’t initially trigger main issues, because the car’s low-slung battery pack is inside a particular compartment that’s meant to maintain the water out of it. However, given sufficient time, the water managed to search out its method to the battery cells. As a result of the water had salt in it, it was conductive. This shorted out the cells, inflicting a series response of awfulness and hearth.
When this occurred throughout Hurricane Ian, I didn’t assume it was a authentic drawback. In any case, we had been assured by Tesla that the battery packs are waterproof. Elon Musk even mentioned that they may function a ship in a pinch. We’ve seen heaps and plenty of movies the place Teslas and different EVs ford deep water and get via when different autos stall out and flood. So, it didn’t make sense that water would get inside the pack, and we thought that Florida officers had been mendacity.
However, it seems that they weren’t, and it seems that it retains occurring. Given sufficient time, a Tesla (and probably another EV manufacturers) will embrace that “salt life” after which find yourself in salt dying.
What’s not clear is whether or not that is an industry-wide problem or one thing restricted to sure makes/fashions. All the fashionable EV period media experiences I may discover talked about a Tesla car, and generally e-bikes and electrical scooters. Going additional again, some early fashionable EVs and PHEVs from Fisker and Toyota caught hearth after Hurricane Sandy in 2012. Now we have to understand that Teslas are the preferred EV in the US at present by far and that e-bikes and scooters are much more common. So, it’s not clear whether or not these autos are extra weak than others or if they simply come up in experiences due to sheer numbers.
All EVs Ought to Be Waterproof
Right here’s the factor: that is unacceptable. Most significantly, lives are put in danger by battery packs that may’t spend a number of days flooded with out turning into a sizzling mess. Folks evacuating ought to be capable of repair up their properties, not come again to a home that first flooded after which burnt. If sufficient individuals purchase EVs, this might grow to be frighteningly frequent after a hurricane. That is additionally horrible for the entire EV {industry}, because it helps cement the false concept that EVs are typically a much bigger hearth threat than combustion autos, which they don’t seem to be.
The answer is fairly easy. EV producers have to have some satisfaction of their work and ensure each EV that leaves the manufacturing facility can deal with immersion for lengthy durations with out going up in flames. This would possibly require some higher sealing the place the pack closes up. It’s undoubtedly going to require higher verify valves that maintain stress from build up contained in the pack as a result of temperature shifts, and so forth.
This would possibly sound like a ridiculous demand to some, however we have now to understand that there are numerous different merchandise on the market that may deal with water for lengthy durations. Telephones with an IP68 score are available available on the market, and there’s no cause that car battery packs can’t be constructed to an analogous customary. I’d suggest that an EV ought to be capable of face up to immersion in as much as 10 ft of water for every week with out water intrusion into the pack.
Featured picture: a screenshot from the Pinellas County tweet above (truthful use).
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