alt.hn

1/17/2025 at 2:18:16 PM

One of largest lithium battery plants ignites in Moss Landing

 https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/lithium-battery-plant-ignites-moss-landing-fire-20040198.php

by inferiorhuman

1/17/2025 at 7:34:43 PM

> prompting evacuations and warnings to stay inside to avoid noxious fumes in Monterey County.

This is what I have always been worried about... Modern industry seems all fine until a fire breaks out or a train overturns.

by suraci

1/17/2025 at 11:50:57 PM

What type of fire smoke is not toxic?

by dzhiurgis

1/18/2025 at 12:47:24 AM

Pure hydrogen fire?

Depends on what's making up the burning airship .. but that's not the hydrogen fire, that's the additives.

by defrost

1/18/2025 at 7:04:49 AM

If it’s pure hydrogen then it produces no smoke ;)

by dzhiurgis

1/18/2025 at 7:33:31 AM

It produces water mist. Steam. Particulate in the air. Airborne combustion product. AKA "Smoke".

by defrost

1/19/2025 at 5:56:49 AM

It produces vapour which isn’t same as smoke

by dzhiurgis

1/18/2025 at 12:41:09 AM

I mean it's a standard warning for fires, but battery fires are a more dangerous form of toxic due to the corrosive materials batteries are made of.

by Jarwain

1/18/2025 at 9:41:38 AM

Compared to what?

For cars fires there have been some articles showing there’s not much difference in the amount toxic stuff in the smoke between EVs and ICE. So batteries aren’t that bad.

If we’re talking burning factories I’m sure there are other factories that would emit far more nastier stuff. And some that would be much more benign of course.

So again the question is, compared to what?

by audunw

1/18/2025 at 11:13:39 AM

> there’s not much difference in the amount toxic stuff in the smoke between EVs and ICE. So batteries aren’t that bad.

EVs burn longer.

by hulitu

1/17/2025 at 8:30:05 PM

I was on a run last night and noticed the glow. How many times has that battery plant caught fire? Seems like grid scale battery technology is not ready for the lime light. AB 2514 forced utilities to build out this dumpster fire. It's ironic that California's climate solution is burning while the state blames climate change for the LA fire.

by brocklobsta

1/18/2025 at 9:52:40 AM

I don’t think you’re keeping in mind what these batteries are replacing.

Coal power plants and gasoline cars release harmful smoke as part of their regular operation.

ICE cars are several times more likely to catch fire than an EV, and contribute much more fuel to a parking garage fire (usually an EV battery caught in a fire will not itself ignite)

And the incidents related to the fossil fuel industry are orders of magnitude worse than incidents like this. Have you forgotten about deep water horizon?

There are also thousands upon thousands of old oil and gas wells in the US that haven’t been properly decommissioned, slowly corroding and leaking nasty stuff in the environment. The cost of properly plugging all of them has been estimated to be in the trillions of dollars.

Is there some name for the kind of fallacy people make where they’re so concerned about the dangers of whatever the new thing is, while completely glossing over the glaring issues of the old thing that’s being replaced because they’re so used to it?

I find it particularly baffling when it comes to EVs vs gasoline cars. People should know how dangerous gasoline is… right? It’s like, super basic knowledge for anyone born the last two centuries..

by audunw

1/18/2025 at 11:35:05 AM

> People should know how dangerous gasoline is… right?

From Wikipedia:

"Lithium metal is corrosive and requires special handling to avoid skin contact. Breathing lithium dust or lithium compounds (which are often alkaline) initially irritate the nose and throat, while higher exposure can cause a buildup of fluid in the lungs, leading to pulmonary edema. The metal itself is a handling hazard because contact with moisture produces the caustic lithium hydroxide. Lithium is safely stored in non-reactive compounds such as naphtha"

by hulitu

1/17/2025 at 10:35:57 PM

Other reports indicate this facility has had fires twice before.

by anon84873628

1/17/2025 at 11:12:07 PM

That seems like a high rate of fires given that plant opened at the end of 2020. I wonder what to total cost.

by brocklobsta