Lithium Ion Batteries

Mitsubishi Motors North America is recalling replacement lithium-ion batteries installed on certain 2012 Mitsubishi i-MiEV vehicles. The batteries were manufactured December 18, 2012, through December 21, 2012.

The batteries may have internal contamination possibly causing reduced voltage. Also, the batteries may also develop a short-circuit during charging. Internal contamination of the battery may cause reduced voltage resulting in a stall-like condition, increasing the risk of a crash.

Mitsubishi will notify the owners instructing them to take their vehicle to a dealer where the batteries will be replaced free of charge. The manufacturer has not yet provided a notification schedule.

Owners may contact Mitsubishi at 1-800-222-0307. Mitsubishi's recall number is SR-13-006.

A California teen suffered second-degree burns when her Kyocera Wireless 2325 cell phone caught fire, according to local fire investigators.

The 16-year-old Ontario girl's phone burst into "fist-size flames" without warning, said Frank Huddleston, an investigator at the Ontario fire department. Huddleston said he suspects the phone's battery overheated.

Witnesses said the victim had the phone in her back pocket, when it "let out a whoosh," bulged, then shot out flames and smoke. She was treated for second-degree burns and released.

Huddleston said there were no sources of flame nearby. He said witnesses saw flames coming from the bottom of the phone, near vents that are intended to prevent overheating batteries from exploding.

Kyocera issued a recall of about 140,000 batteries used in Kyocera Model 7135 Smartphones in January. The recall announcement said the batteries can short-circuit and erupt with force or emit excessive heat, posing a burn hazard to consumers.

In January, the Consumer Product Safety Commission issued its first-ever recall of cell phone batteries, some 40,000 from Coslight International Group in Hong Kong. The batteries were on four phones, all Kyocera Wireless models that overheated. One person was slightly injured from the defect. The batteries were also available from Verizon Wireless and Alltel.

There have been other incidents involving portable phones overheating and exploding, raising concerns about the safety of jamming the devices into pockets, purses and briefcases and holding them against the face.

Panasonic Corporation of North America of Newark, N.J., is recalling about 500 lithium-ion (Li-ion) computer battery packs in the U.S. and Canada.

Conductive foreign material was mixed into the battery cells during manufacturing, posing a risk of fire.

No incidents or injuries have been reported

This recall involves Panasonic six-cell Li-ion battery packs sold in Panasonic CF-S10 Series laptop computers. “Panasonic” and “CF-S10” are on the surface of the laptop on the left side below the keyboard.

Battery packs with the following model numbers and production lot numbers are being recalled:

The model number and lot number are located on the battery pack nameplate.

The battery packs, manufactured in Japan, were sold at Panasonic dealers from December 2011, through August 2013, for about $2,000 for the laptop.

What to do

Consumers should immediately stop using the laptop computer with the recalled battery, power off the device, remove the battery pack and contact Panasonic for a free replacement battery pack.

Consumers may contact Panasonic toll-free at 855-772-8324 anytime or visit www.panasonic.com for more information.

It's lithium ion batteries that power the iPhones, iPads and other iStuff that have come to be regarded as the essentials of life. Only problem is, they tend to catch fire, leading Boeing Co. to warn airlines that loading up their planes' cargo compartments with bulk battery shipments pose unacceptable fire hazards.

There've been plenty of cases of individual phones and other devices catching fire, both on the grund and in the air. Just one blazing phone is a problem; think what a blazing pallet of burning batteries could do.

That, says the Wall Street Journal, is what led Boeing to issue a formal warning to its customers, urging them to stop accepting large shipments of lithium batteries until safer packaging and fire protection efforts can be worked out.

Let them take a slow boat from China, Boeing advised, though not in so many words.

Nothing new

It's hardly a new problem. There have been many case over the years of cell phones igniting in people's pockets, on airplanes and in other inconvenient locations.

Last August, an airplane was evacuated in Tel Aviv after an iPhone 5 caught fire and filled the cabin with smoke. Last July, a smartphone caught fire under a 13-year-old girl's pillow in Dallas. And way back in 2008, a laptop computer caught fire in a vintage pickup truck in Nevada, destroying the truck, a Remington rifle and setting off two boxes of ammunition.

Boeing has reportedly been giving the no-big-battery-cartons advice to airlines who asked but has now issued a formal warning to all of the world's carriers, who are expected to comply. Airlines that disregard the warning would be on shaky legal ground in the event of a disaster attributed to flaming batteries.

Feds pondering

Boeing at least beat the U.S. government, which has been considering rules limited lithium batteries in carry-on luggage since 2007. In March 2007, the Department of Transportation said there had been five fires in airplane passenger cabins or cargo holds since 2005, a period of only two years.

Lithium metal batteries were banned from the cargo holds of U.S. airliners in 2004 but lithium ion batteries -- which are much more common -- are still good to go.

Lithium metal batteries are nonrechargeable while the lithium ion type is the one we're all familiar with -- requiring frequent plug-ins to keep the juices flowing.

The problem is that other things can get the juices flowing as well. Both types of batteries contain chemical-infused metals that get very hot very quickly if they come into contact with each other due to a short circuit or leaking seal. The result is a fast-spreading, very hot fire that is very difficult to extinguish.

While a single battery catching fire in a phone or laptop may start a small fire, a battery catching fire in a shipment of thousands of batteries could start a blaze that would quickly become catastrophic. 

Many airlines have already stopped accepting battery shipments and Boening's warning may push the recalcitrants to act as well. While Boeing's warning doesn't have the force of law, airlines nearly always comply with formal warnings from manufacturers, so Boeing may have accomplished what governments so far have not gotten around to.

NVIDIA Corp., of Santa Clara, Calif., is recalling about 88,000 NVIDIA SHIELD tablet computers in the U.S. and Canada.

The lithium-ion battery in the tablets can overheat, posing a fire hazard.

The company has received 4 reports of batteries overheating due to thermal runaway, including 2 reports of damage to flooring.

This recall involves NVIDIA SHIELD tablet computers with 8-inch touch screens. Model numbers P1761, P1761W and P1761WX and serial numbers 0410215901781 through 0425214604018 are included in this recall.

NVIDIA and the model and serial numbers are etched on the left side edge of the tablets. The SHIELD logo is on the back of the tablets.

The computers, manufactured in China, were sold at GameStop stores nationwide and online at Amazon.com, BestBuy.com, GameStop.com, NewEgg.com, TigerDirect.com and other websites from July 2014, through July 2015, for between $300 and $400.

Consumers should immediately stop using the tablets and contact NVIDIA for instructions on receiving a free replacement tablet.

Consumers may contact NVIDIA toll free at (888) 943-4196 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. PT Monday through Friday or online at www.nvidia.com and click on “NVIDIA Tablet Recall Program” at the bottom center of the page in green letters.

Fujitsu America of Sunnyvale, Calif., is recalling about 305 Fujitsu notebook computer battery packs in the U.S. and Canada.

The battery packs can overheat, posing a fire hazard.

The company has received three reports of the battery packs catching fire, including two in Japan and one in China and causing fire damage to rugs, bedding, a desk and other furniture. No injuries have been reported.

This recall involves Fujitsu lithium ion battery packs sold or provided as replacement battery packs for the following Fujitsu notebook computers: Celsius H720 and LIFEBOOK E752, P701, P702, P770, P771, P772, S752, S762 and T580. The battery packs were also sold separately. The black battery packs measure about 8 inches long, 2 inches wide and about 0.8 inches high.

Model number CP556150-1 including all serial numbers, and model number CP556150-2 with serial number range Z120102 through Z120512 are included in this recall. The model and serial numbers are printed on the white battery label. The notebook computer’s model number is printed on a label on the bottom of the notebook.

The batteries, manufactured in China, were sold online at www.shopfujitsu.com and other Web retailers from August 2012, through July 2015, for about $150.

Consumers should immediately turn off their Fujitsu notebook computer, remove the battery pack and contact Fujitsu for a free replacement battery pack. Consumers can continue to use their Fujitsu notebook computer without the battery pack by plugging in the AC adapter and power cord.

Consumers may contact Fujitsu at 800-838-5487 from 7 a.m. – 7 p.m. (CT) Monday – Friday or online at www.fujitsu.com/us and click on “Important Announcement: Voluntary Battery Recall and Replacement” for more information.

PNY Technologies of Parsippany, N.J., is recalling about 56,800 portable lithium polymer battery packs in the U.S. and Canada.

Batteries can overheat and vent flames, posing fire and burn hazards.

The company has received one report of venting with flames. No injuries have been reported.

This recall involves portable lithium polymer battery packs with model number T10400 that are used to charge USB-enabled smartphones, tablets and other USB-powered devices.

The batteries are black or grey hand-held devices, 4 inches x 2.75 inches x 0.75 inches, with two USB outputs and four blue LED lights. PNY is laser-printed along the bottom on the front of the battery.

The battery packs, manufactured in China, were sold at Best Buy, Office Depot, Office Max and other retail stores nationwide and online at amazon.com and frys.com from January 2014, through August 2015, for about $50.

Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled batteries and contact PNY for a free replacement rechargeable battery.

Consumers may contact PNY Technologies toll-free at 888-316-1194 from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. (ET) Monday through Friday, online at www.pny.com and click on “Product Recall” under the “Support” menu at the bottom of the page, or by email at Tech-Support-T10400@pny.com.

Eastwood Co., of Pottstown, Pa., is recalling about 500 Rockwood multi-function power packs.

The power packs’ lithium ion batteries can burst during charging, posing a fire hazard.

There have been two reports of the battery packs’ lithium ion batteries bursting during charging and emitting black smoke, damaging carpet and leaving a black mark on a wall. No injuries have been reported.

This recall involves Rockwood portable power packs with lithium ion batteries and cables. They are used to charge a variety of electronic devices and car batteries and have a recessed LED flashlight.

The power packs have a black plastic cover with “Rockwood” printed in white on the top. They measure about 6 inches long, 3 inches wide and 1 inch tall. A yellow and white danger label is on the bottom. Item number 30554 is printed on the packaging.

The power packs, manufactured in China, were sold at Eastwood stores in Chicago, Parma, Ohio, and Pottstown, Pa., in Eastwood’s catalog and online at www.eastwood.com and other websites from January 2015, through October 2015, for between $50 and $110.

Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled power packs and return them to Eastwood for a full refund.

Consumers may contact Eastwood at 800-345-1178 from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. (ET) Monday through Friday or online at http://www.eastwood.com/images/recall_poster_r2_combined.pdf.

Toshiba America Information Systems of Irvine, Calif., is recalling about 101,000 Panasonic battery packs used in Toshiba laptop computers in the U.S. and Canada.

The lithium-ion battery packs can overheat, posing burn and fire hazards to consumers.

The firm has received four reports of the battery packs overheating and melting. No injuries have been reported.

This recall involves Panasonic lithium-ion battery packs installed in 39 models of Toshiba Portege, Satellite, and Tecra laptops. The battery packs were also sold separately and also installed by Toshiba as part of a repair.

Battery packs included in this recall have part numbers that begin with G71C (G71C*******). Part numbers are printed on the battery pack. A complete list of battery pack part numbers included in this recall can be found on the firm’s website at http://go.toshiba.com/battery.

The battery packs, manufactured in China and Japan, were sold at Office Depot, Staples and other electronics stores nationwide, and online at Toshibadirect.com and other websites from June 2011, through January 2016, for between $500 and $1,000 for the laptop and between $70 and $130 for the battery pack.

What to do

Consumers should immediately go to the firm’s website and click on the battery pack utility link in the first shadowed box on the page. Consumers can also perform a manual check using the laptop and battery pack’s model, part and serial numbers. If it is part of the recall, consumers should power off the laptop, remove the battery and follow the instructions to obtain a free replacement battery pack. Until a replacement battery pack is received, consumers should use the laptop by plugging into AC power only.

Consumers may contact Toshiba toll-free at 866-224-1346 any day between 5 a.m. and 11 p.m. (PT), or online at http://go.toshiba.com/battery or at www.us.toshiba.com and click on “Consumer Notices” under the Support heading at the bottom of the page.