World-first open-door large-scale fire test completed on China battery

Hithium has completed a groundbreaking large-scale open-door fire test on its battery energy storage system (BESS), demonstrating exceptional fire safety performance under extreme conditions. The test, conducted by UL Solutions and witnessed by certified U.S. fire protection engineers, adhered to stringent UL 9540A and NFPA 855 safety standards. Key challenges included fully open container doors to allow unrestrained combustion, minimal 15cm spacing between units, deactivation of all fire suppression systems, and testing at 100% state of charge. Despite 15 hours of intense combustion with flames exceeding 1300°C, the system’s multi-layered passive fire protection and thermal isolation prevented fire propagation to adjacent containers and maintained structural integrity. This successful trial highlights Hithium’s autonomous fire resistance capabilities without relying on active suppression, validating the robustness of its passive safety architecture. Industry experts have praised the test as a significant advancement in energy storage fire safety, providing a replicable and practical framework for future safety standards. H