Protecting Energy: Gas Monitoring and Safety Alerts in the Battery Industry

With the global energy transition, lithium-ion, lead-acid, and other battery industries are rapidly growing. However, processes like formation, charging, and electrolyte preparation generate multiple flammable, explosive, toxic, and harmful gases.

From extremely light and explosive hydrogen to corrosive acid mist and sulfur dioxide, these "invisible threats" can impact production efficiency or cause severe fire, explosion, or occupational poisoning incidents. Nexisense leverages advanced gas sensing technology to provide a precise and intelligent safety monitoring system tailored to the battery industry.

“Danger List” in Battery Production: Core Gas Analysis

Different production stages release gases with distinct characteristics, requiring targeted monitoring strategies:

1. Hydrogen (H2): The Lightest Explosion Risk

• Characteristics: Extremely light and highly diffusive, leaks quickly rise to ceilings and high points.

• Risk: Low lower explosive limit (LEL) and minimal ignition energy; accumulation in ceiling corners can easily trigger violent explosions.

• Nexisense Strategy: Deploy high-level detectors for “upward monitoring.”

2. Toxic Gases: Dichloromethane, Sulfur Dioxide, and Acid Mist

• Dichloromethane: Used in separator production or cleaning, toxic and anesthetic.

• Sulfur Dioxide (SO2): Byproduct in lead-acid battery production, strongly irritates respiratory tract.

• Acid Mist: Corrosive vapor from electrolyte evaporation, harmful to workers and equipment.

• Priority Principle: According to national safety regulations, for gases that are both flammable and toxic (e.g., H2 in some conditions), Nexisense follows the “toxic-first” principle, issuing warnings at minimal harmful concentrations.

Nexisense Full-Stack Products for the Battery Industry

To address high corrosion and gas stratification in battery plants, Nexisense builds a closed loop from hardware modules to integrated systems:

1. SGA-500 Series Online H2/Toxic Gas Detectors

• High-Level Installation: Lightweight design, easy to mount on ceilings or beams to capture rising hydrogen.

• Long-Term Stability: Core sensors are imported and optimized for high selectivity, minimizing interference from background gases.

2. SGA-900 Pretreatment Monitoring System

• Dehumidification and Corrosion Protection: Sample air passes through pretreatment to filter corrosive acid mist and moisture, protecting sensors and extending service life in lead-acid battery workshops.

3. SGA-700 Smart Sensor Module

• Plug & Play: Easy integration into battery aging cabinets and charge/discharge testers, providing native gas safety awareness.

4. SGA-600 Portable Detectors for Inspection

• Mobile Defense: Inspectors use portable devices to sample multiple gases before entering formation rooms or material storage, ensuring operational safety.

Targeted Deployment: Hydrogen Monitoring “High-Level Principle”

• Vertical Installation: Hydrogen’s density is much lower than air; detectors must be installed above leak sources, typically 30–60 cm from the ceiling.

• Dead Zone Coverage: Install monitoring points in beam intersections and wind-shadow areas where hydrogen may accumulate.

• Ventilation Linkage: SGA-800 controller triggers roof fans when H2 exceeds thresholds, dispersing accumulated gas.

  
  

Why Battery Companies Choose Nexisense

• Multi-Gas Monitoring: Simultaneously track H2, SO2, O2, and VOCs via RS485 digital aggregation.

• Strong Anti-Interference: EMC-capable equipment resists electromagnetic interference from charging/discharging currents.

• Corrosion-Proof Enclosure: Special anti-corrosion housing and three-proof PCB coating resist acid mist.

• Smart Module Design: Hot-swappable sensors on-site without recalibration reduce cost and downtime.

Battery Production & Energy Storage Safety: FAQ

Q1: H2 is light and flammable; any strict installation requirements?
A1: Hydrogen is 1/14th the density of air. Detectors must be 30–60 cm below the ceiling; beams form compartments to prevent local accumulation.

Q2: “Toxic-first” principle vs H2 “explosion monitoring”?
A2: Not contradictory. In personnel areas, use ppm-level sensors to warn at 100–500 ppm; in unmanned tank areas, use %LEL or IR sensors.

Q3: Acid mist in lead-acid workshops deactivates sensors; solution?
A3: Active SGA-900 with multi-stage neutralization and moisture separation; passive PTFE hydrophobic membrane and three-proof coating.

Q4: Why PID for dichloromethane instead of semiconductor?
A4: PID detects micro-leaks (0.01 ppm) within 3 seconds, immune to humidity and solvent interference.

Q5: Tight battery aging cabinets with EMI; sensor placement?
A5: Use small SGA-700 modules embedded in cabinets; signal isolated and filtered to ensure EMC performance.

Q6: ESS containers, what gases to monitor?
A6: CO (early warning), H2 (explosive risk), VOCs (electrolyte leakage), multi-sensor fusion enables pre-fire detection.

Q7: How to integrate signals into digital management?
A7: RS485 (Modbus RTU), up to hundreds of points; wireless 4G/5G/LoRa options; data to safety dashboard and app.

Q8: Complying with stricter safety audits?
A8: Nexisense products have explosion-proof certification and CPA approval, maintain logs of 1000+ alarms/calibrations, and provide end-of-life sensor warnings.

Summary

Gas safety in the battery industry involves light gas accumulation and acid resistance. Nexisense provides precise sensor layouts, advanced pretreatment, and intelligent integration to build a “production-to-cloud” digital safety barrier. Concerned about H2 accumulation or ESS container safety? Contact Nexisense experts for tailored monitoring layouts and complete hardware/software solutions.