Underwriters Laboratories Working on Standards for Electric-Car Batteries
By Scott Doggett September 21, 2009
The American safety testing and certification company Underwriters Laboratories announced today that it intends to release a new set of requirements for large batteries in electric vehicles, UL Subject 2580.
UL said in a statement that with interest in electric vehicles on the rise, the "new requirements will help mitigate the potential risk of fire and electrical hazards and enhance the overall safety of batteries for electric vehicles."
In other words, the company is hoping that once it creates a set of requirements for EV batteries, the government will require battery-makers to obtain UL certifications for them. UL has conveniently come up with a name for the certificate: Subject 2580.
"Before becoming a standard, these requirements will undergo a comprehensive review process by a global Standard Technical Panel (STP). An STP is a consensus body of individuals representing consumers, government agencies, regulatory authorities, manufacturers and other knowledgeable interested parties that develop and maintain effective product safety standards," UL said.
According to the international consulting firm Oliver Wyman, the estimated number of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) and battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) that will be on the road globally over the next decade range from 1 million to 5 million new vehicles per year.
UL stated that along with this rapid growth comes the potential for fire, electric shock and other safety hazards. UL is clearly hoping the U.S. government will agree and will require UL certification of EV batteries sold in America.
But even if the government doesn't agree, UL thinks it can still make some money from the EV industry: "While UL Subject 2580 will not be mandated, manufacturers will have the option of certifying to its requirements to help reduce risks."
But UL isn't stopping with the batteries. In addition to developing new standards for EV batteries, UL claims it has been "conducting tests and certifying to existing standards for numerous hybrid and battery-electric vehicle components. Some of these components include motors, connectors and battery chargers.
"UL tests these components for overload protection, shock and flammability among other hazards. Ultimately, UL's requirements for electric vehicle safety help move the industry toward performance and safety standardization."
UL is an independent product safety certification organization that has been testing products and writing Standards for Safety for over a century. UL evaluates more than 19,000 types of products, components, materials and systems annually with 20 billion UL marks appearing on 72,000 manufacturers' products each year.
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