Fire at lithium battery plant in South Korea kills at least 22 people
According to Kim, workers who fled the fire said the fire started when a single battery cell caught fire, triggering a series of explosions among some of the 35,000 lithium battery cells stored on the second floor of the factory. Fires can occur in lithium batteries when the internal layers are compressed, causing a short circuit. The layers can be compressed by a sudden impact, such as during a vehicle collision, or by the gradual swelling of the batteries from regular use. Lithium is a metal capable of storing large amounts of energy in a small space, which is why…