Evaluation on fire incident of electric vehicle spaces onboard ferries with using fire dynamics simulations

This study brings a unique perspective of electric vehicles (EVs) transportation via maritime with using performance-based design of fire safety management. In the recent years, due to the increase of production and transportation of EVs, this study is highlighted the fire safety management. The integration of electric vehicles (EVs) into maritime transport, particularly via ships and ferries, brings about unique challenges, notably concerning fire safety management. Given the increasing prevalence of EVs and their potential fire hazards, it’s crucial to address these risks comprehensively. The fire safety management of electric vehicles in ferry transport is dealt with, as this form of maritime transport is becoming increasingly important due to the increased production of this type of vehicle, which develops a complex chemical reaction mechanism and dangerous properties such as initial exothermal temperature, self-heating speed, pressure increase speed, etc. Therefore, relevant rules and regulations should be considered to ensure a safe journey. This study brings novelty to the fire safety analysis of EVs transportation onboard ships with using performance-based design and fire dynamics simulation tools to predict temperature level of the case incident. The Fire Dynamic Simulator was used for the simulations for the prediction of temperature distributions during an electric vehicle fire inside a ferry. The presented case study demonstrates how fire simulations could predict conditions for performance-based design of ferries that transport electric vehicles. Depending on simulations, temperature at initial times approximately 40s of fire incidents caused by EVs is around 1200°C and this cause severe results in terms of life and asset safety. In conclusion, this paper presents a brief insight to find an effective method for simulating and mitigating EV fires on ships to ensure crew safety and minimize fire damage.