Recently, the most smartphone selling encountered a huge loss due to one of their product “Samsung Galaxy Note 7”. The company asked the 2.5 million customers return their phones and it also paid them the full amount. This arose due to the explosion of batteries in the Samsung galaxy note 7. The U.S Consumer Product Safety Commission and Federal Aviation Authority asked the customers to stop the usage of galaxy note7.
The batteries used in the mobiles and the most of the electronic gadgets were the “Lithium Ion Batteries”. This is not the first time to hear about the explosion of the batteries. In 2006, Dell also encountered the similar problem.
Why The Lithium-Ion Batteries Are Used In The Smartphones?
- The usage of the Lithium-ion batteries in the smartphones and laptops started since 1991.
- They are easy to produce and are available at a lower cost than AA battery.
- They store energy via chemical reactions and produce when required.
- The battery has two electrodes on the opposite ends. The electricity enters and leaves the battery from this place.
- It is similar to that of the normal battery. It has a+ (cathode) and a- (anode) sign.
- When they are used in smartphones, lithium moves from cathode to anode.
- While they are in the charging mode, lithium moves from anode to cathode.
- There is a separator between the cathode and anode to prevent from touching of the two electrodes.
How Does The Lithium Ion Batteries Explode?
- The explosion or the catching of fire occurs when the cathode and anode short circuits i.e touch each other.
- Samsung released a statement regarding the explosion of the note 7 batteries and confirmed that the explosion occurred due to the manufacturing error.
- Most of the times they may explode due to the errors in charging.
- The amount of charging and rate of charging depends on the software in the phone.
- Due to the error in setting the protocols, the chemical imbalance occurs and as a result, they may explode.
- Lithium has a special property i.e it reacts with all the elements and as a result chain reaction called “thermal runaway” takes place. This leads to fire or explosions.
- Overheating of the phone is also one of the reasons of battery explosions. This is due to the metal frames of the smartphones.
- Sometimes when your phone dropped down, the separator between the anode and cathode may get damaged leading to the explosion of the battery.
How To Prevent The Explosion Of Batteries?
- Avoid using the fake chargers /3rd party chargers. Use only the original and the company certified mobile chargers.
- Do not overcharge and also don’t keep your phone near your surrounding while you are asleep.
- Do not use non-certified local power banks.
- Do not leave your phone under the direct sunlight for a longer time.
- Don’t apply too much pressure on your smartphone.
- Use a better protective cover which prevents your phone from exploding when dropped on the floor unexpectedly.
So be careful while using your smartphones. Follow the above precautions and don’t get frightened as the most of the companies manufacture following safety and preventive measures.
