Damaged Lipo, Disposal?
 

Hi, was having a good bash at the BMX track with my truggy, hit a massive jump bad landing, cartwheels yadda yadda yadda. End result, lipo broke the gorilla maxx straps, have broken 4 of these already.. why do I keep using them...(going to hardware store to get some nice thick straps). It got wedged in the front between my battery tray and the steering columns (hyper st pro). There were also a lot of little dents in the packs, I think due to my poor battery tray, which I am going to be remaking.

There is what looks like a puncture wound on one of the packs, it has pierced the foil covering. I connected it to my balancer to check the voltages of the cells, and they are all at 3.97v, with one cell at 3.98v. There is no swelling of any of the packs.

It pains me to ask this, as this is only about the 5th run I have had on this $400AUD battery pack Poly-RC 6S1P 6000mah, but should I dispose of it, and what would be the best method. I have done some reading and it looks like I should discharge the cell with a lightbulb 24v or similar to 0V and then dunk it in a salt water bath. But then I have read many conflicting reports, some from a few years ago.

How do you guys do it now?

Let me see if I can get a few pics.

Get some pics but you might be able to just remove the offending cell with broken foil and at least have a 5s pack...

+1^ If this isn't something you want to handle youself contact LincPimp

do xcelorin brushless systems fit in a team associated rc18mt

Where did this come from? Please post in the proper sections and in threads that are on the same topic. Yes the 1/18th xcelorin systems will fit an rc18 based vehicle. IMO go with a CC setup though. I ran a Mamba25/5400kv setup in an rc18t on 2s lipo and 6cell nimh. Plenty fast! Mamba 25 is outdated now and I can't recall the name of it's replacement b ut they do have one, castlecreations.com

Pictures, I have removed the black heatshrink.

http://i43.tinypic.com/r741mo.jpg
http://i41.tinypic.com/r1gdx3.jpg

If you want to send me the pack I can remove that cell and test the others. The cell with the tear in the foil is done for. Please do not attempt to charge the pack...

As you are in Aus I wouldn't suggest sending it to Linc - With some precautions I'd give it a go to remove that cell...

Seems a shame to trash a 6s pack...

Else to dispose yes hook up a couple of 12v car light bulbs in series until packs are at zero v...

Not a good idea to fully discharge a lipo Chris.... They tend to puff and possibly rupture that way. I have never had a fire, but I have had a few cells get real hot. These were in a radio left on all night (no lvc) so the draw was very low, but they got hot enough I could not hold the pack.

No reason to not ship the pack, as long as it is not loose in the package it will be fine. I have shipped and have had packs shipped to me from all over the place and not had an issue so far... Hate to see him toss a decent pack, especially considering what he paid....

** DISPOSAL OF LIPO BATTERIES **
Unlike NiCd batteries, lithium-polymer batteries are environmentally friendly.
For safety reasons, it’s best that LiPo cells be fully discharged before disposal (however,
if physically damaged it is NOT recommended to discharge LiPo cells before disposal -
see below for details). The batteries must also be cool before proceeding with disposal
instructions.

To dispose of LiPo cells and packs:
1. If any LiPo cell in the pack has been physically damaged, resulting
in a swollen cell or a split or tear in a cell’s foil covering, do NOT discharge the battery.
Jump to step 5.
2. Place the LiPo battery in a fireproof container or bucket of sand.
3. Connect the battery to a LiPo discharger. Set the discharge cutoff
voltage to the
lowest possible value. Set the discharge current to a C/10 value, with “C” being the
capacity rating of the pack. For example, the “1C” rating for a 1200mAh battery is 1.2A,
and that battery’s C/10 current value is (1.2A / 10) can be used,
such as a power resistor or set of light bulbs as long as the discharge current doesn’t
exceed the C/10 value and cause an overheating condition.
For LiPo packs rated at 7.4V and 11.1V , connect a 150 ohm resistor with a power rating
of 2 watts (commonly found at Radio Shack)to the pack’s positive and negative terminals
to safely discharge connecting it to an ESC/ motor system and allowing the motor to run
indefinitely until no power remains to further cause the system to function.
4. Discharge the battery until its voltage reaches 1.0V per cell or
lower. For resistive load type discharges, discharge the battery for up to 24 hours.
5. Submerse the battery into bucket or tub of salt water. This container should have a lid,
but it should not need to be air-tight. Prepare a plastic container (do not use metal) of cold
water. And mix in 1/2 cup of salt per gallon of water. Drop the battery into the salt water.
Allow the battery to remain in the tub of salt water for at least 2 weeks.
6. Remove the LiPo battery from the salt water, wrap it in newspaper or paper towels and
place it in the normal trash. They are landfill safe.


Basically if not knackered take voltage to zero else do the salt bath...

I'd hate to be that person who brings down a 747 with a lipo fire... I'm sure the odds are tiny but thats just me...

I gotta weigh in on the side of caution here. You will be shipping something that is potentially explosive. There are proper means of doing this - contact your shipping company of choice, and they can tell you what it would take to safely ship this item. It may end up being prohibitively expensive. Maybe getting an ammo box at a surplus store, and ship it in a lipo sack would be sufficient. The weight of the box will drive up your cost, but it'd be safe.

Now, on the other hand, if one of those jumbo's does go down, it'll likely mean another order for us, and I'd love to build another airplane! Just kidding......the fire suppresion systems would quickly have that fire put out, and all we'd have is a few soaked and charred packages - and more than one unhappy customer.

I guess the salt bath is the best way to completely discharge a lipo. A std nimh light bulb discharger is definately not safe.

As far as shipping goes, a properly padded package should be fine. Tape the holes with something non conductive and the same with the tabs. Unless the lipo shorts it will be fine. Remember that we ship non dmamged lipos all of the time, and the same sharp object could stick thru the package and cause one of them to catch fire. Caution is fine, but blind paranoia does not do anyone any favors.

So is a damaged lipo considered as stable as an undamaged one? Not arguing, just wanting to know.

Honestly if the cell is not puffed it has not undergone the chemical reaction that produces the gas that may makes the cell casing puff/pop. As far as lipo fires go, the internal anode and cathode must touch, or arc in some way to get the litium to ignite via extreme heat. I have had cells puff from overdischarge, and seen what happens when you over charge one (hooked a 12v car battery to a 1 cell lipo with jumper cables in the yard, it made a pop noise and smoked a bit).

As far as shipping goes, as long as the pack is not puffed, and does not have any method of shorting the tabs it should be just as safe as a new lipo. That means that if you stick a screwdriver (or something sharp) thru either it will produce the same result (some smoke and heat). I have had torn case cells hanging around for months, all they do is smell a bit sweet (must be the paste inside) and take up space. I have read may different ways to dispose of lipos, and the vast majority just say to snip off the tabs and toss them in the garbage.

I have thrown them on the ground, stabbed then, run over them with a truck (f250) and never got anything until I hooked up the car battery. I have had worse smoke and heat from nimhs going bad....

Good info.

Why do I suspect some of the above were intentional?!?!:lol:

I have abosolutely no idea why you would think that...:lol:

Something I was told, by an old timer. Lipo cells are vacuum sealed and if it was punctured it would puff as to regain our atmospheric pressure. I.C., I.E. if it ant puffin it aint busted

Nah, they are not really vacuumed that tight. They are airtight, that is why they puff when you overdischarge them and the chemistry alters...

I have purposedly damaged all kinds of lipos in all kinds of ways. I have a feeling that a tear in the pack lets air in and that causes issues. Not like a lead acid battery that does not care about air. Maybe the paste is oxygen sensitive?

Anyways, I have also salvaged many near 0v cells... If they are discharged slowly with a very small draw, they can be revived with a very slow charge. As long as they have not puffed...

From my experience the cheap chinese cells seem to not puff as often as the name brand cells when let drop below 2v... Truerc cells are sturdy, I run them with no lvc and just charge them slowly, in my 10th scale stuff and crawlers.

Here in South Dakota we like to dispose of old batteries in a big fire....:lol: It makes the night more exciting...

From my experiences, "AA type" (AAA,AA,C,D etc.) batteries are really loud when they explode. I haven't burned a lipo yet, but I have an old lipo cell phone battery I will burn next trip to the farm.:yipi:

btw I'm not a pyro,,, Just a wannabe redneck.:party:

I'd believe its a chemical reaction that causes puffing before I'd buy into the compressed material theory. A material that can be compressed has an open cell structure (ie., foam, or at the micro level, air). Neither of these are considered high on the electrically conductive scale. I think that right there exhausts my knowledge on the matter......!!!

You live in South Dakota....you can't be a redneck....much too plain jane.... (I grew up in eastern MT, so I know, I tried too>>)

makes sense, I get alot of my info from the 65 year old guys at the "airplane park" here, Cant say there isnt a bottle of scotch floating around and tales of the great white whale.. they do have RC planes bigger than my house though

Well lithium itself is very reactive to oxygen, idk about lipos but the AA lithium batts have a lithium metal foil in them, when exposed to air it turns dingy brown very quickly and heats up slowly