ELI5- Are lithium batteries in electric cars more dangerous or hazardous than a gasoline car? If so, why or why not?
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Lithium battery powered cars are probably safer but it’s kind of an unfair comparison.
1. Yes, a lithium battery fire is much harder to put out than a gas fire. But a lot of effort and decades upon decades of engineering has gone into making sure car gas tanks are safe. Lithium batteries for cars are still in their early years and we can expect that in twenty, thirty, fifty, years lithium battery engineers will look back on what we do today and shudder at how dangerous it was. So you’re comparing a mature technology to a new one.
2. We’re ignoring other dangers of gas cars. There are plenty of people who asphyxiated from gas fumes (intentionally or accidentally) and I don’t think it is entirely fair to limit our examination to just the “will it burst into flames” risk.
3. We’re ignoring other parts of the distribution system. A few months back I was down in Florida and someone crashed into a gas station. Innocent bystandard, just fuelling up their car, ended up burned to death. Electric charging is significantly safer for everyone than the dangers of transporting and storing massive quantities of flammable fuel.
So, if you’re driving down the road, today, in a fully charged electric car and crash, then compare the risks of the same accident with a gas powered vehicle, it could well be that the electric car is a bit more dangerous. But if you look at total risks, then electric is better. If you want to ask conceptually which is safer, then electric wins again.
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