2023-10-07 17:35:57
The power grid is full in several places in the Netherlands. As a result, households with solar panels cannot always supply their surplus electricity. With a home battery you can store that power for later use, but many homes are unsuitable for safely supplying a home battery.
In Nederland hebben volgens Jeroen Neefs van brancheorganisatie Energy Storage NL hooguit 5.000 van de ruim 8,3 miljoen huishoudens een thuisaccu. In omringende landen zijn volgens de organisatie al veel meer woningen met een thuisbatterij uitgerust.
Een van de reden daarvoor is dat we in Nederland veel oudere appartementen en rijtjeswoningen hebben. Het is volgens Henk Brans niet vanzelfsprekend dat die voldoende veilig zijn voor thuisbatterijen. Brans is onderzoeker en adviseur veilige energietransitie bij het Nederlands Instituut Publieke Veiligheid (NIPV).
Bij de aanleg van het elektriciteitsnetwerk in en rondom oudere woningen is volgens Brans destijds geen rekening gehouden met het aansluiten van bijvoorbeeld zonnepanelen, warmtepompen en laadpalen. “Daarnaast mag iedereen in de meterkast na de hoofdstop doen wat hij wil.”
“Hoe vaker zware apparatuur wordt toegevoegd aan een elektrische installatie, hoe groter de kans op fouten in de installatie”, legt Brans uit. Het komt daarnaast voor dat batterijen in brand vliegen of een explosie veroorzaken.
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Battery fire is a chain reaction that is difficult to stop
A battery can catch fire as a result of a so-called thermal runaway. That is an unwanted chain reaction in the battery. A new part of the battery always catches fire.
This chain reaction can only be stopped by cooling the battery for a long time. This is often done by immersing the battery in water. But even after a day of cooling, the chain reaction can start again if parts of the battery have not cooled down enough. The battery may then become unstable again.
Neefs estimates the chance that something will go wrong between 1 in 100,000 and 1 in 1,000,000. “In Germany, 80 percent of people who install solar panels on their roof now choose to install a home battery. There has not been a single serious incident there so far.”
The consequences of a fire in a home battery are very serious
But if things go wrong at home, the consequences are very serious, Brans emphasizes. A home can become full of toxic gases and become uninhabitable due to a fire or explosion. In addition, it takes a very long time to extinguish the fire and it can pose unexpected dangers to the fire brigade, for example.
A battery fire can be caused by a production error. But according to the inspection company DEKRA, known for the KEMA-KEUR quality mark, there are usually external causes that cause a battery to catch fire. This concerns, for example, incorrect installation or incorrect use. But a cyber attack on the battery can also cause a fire in the worst case, the inspection body warns.
Ontvang een melding bij nieuwe ontwikkelingen.
Strict rules for large batteries, but no requirements for smaller batteries
Stricter safety rules apply in the Netherlands for batteries with a storage capacity of more than 20 kWh. These regulations are aimed at large energy storage systems. But most home batteries have a lower storage capacity. “There is still no regulation for this,” says NIPV researcher Brans.
All home batteries sold in Europe have a so-called CE marking. But that is not a quality mark, warns the inspection body DEKRA. “We see products appearing on the market that have not been tested or have been tested incorrectly.”
Manufacturers may place the CE marking on their products themselves. With the marking, the manufacturer says that its product complies with European standards in the field of health, safety and environmental protection.
There are risks associated with every type of battery
According to DEKRA, no good answer can be given to the question of which home battery is the safest. “So-called lithium iron phosphate batteries (LFP batteries) are usually used for home batteries. They can store slightly less energy per kilogram than batteries from the so-called lithium ion family.”
According to NIPV researcher Brans, measurements show that the heat released during fires with LFP batteries is indeed slightly lower compared to NMC batteries. “But with all lithium ion batteries there is a risk of thermal runaway a safety issue.”
Home batteries can help against blockages in the power grid
According to Neefs from Energy Storage NL, home batteries can contribute to solving the blockage on the power grid. But then the stored electricity must mainly be for your own use. If the home battery also feeds back into the grid, new blockages may arise.
In addition, according to Energy Storage NL, there is no incentive for people to invest in a home battery. That is also an important reason why we have so few home batteries in the Netherlands. Neefs: “The netting scheme ensures that the power grid functions like a battery that you can supply back to, resulting in congestion.”
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