Li-Ion are a nightmare for anyone shipping, "Not Allowed as Cargo on passenger Airlines". A person can carry them on if they tape over the contacts, put them in zip lock bags, and limit them to sets only enough to reasonably be able to run the instruments they are transporting with them at the time, not commercial transport.
All the early Li-Ion legal exceptions for small sizes have been withdrawn, no longer apply. The new 2009 laws / transport rules for Li-Ion batteries are tough in the USA and internationally.
Passenger airlines lack adequate fire suppression to allow for them to be check as luggage...ever. Comforting I know... ha, ha. And you thought "no fire works" was based on regional taxes!
If they get crushed to the point of shorting out they tend to burn like a flare, hard to extinguish and ugly results. If there is a flaw in the internal cell separation, they can catch fire and burn spontaneously. Ever see railroad workers do a chemical weld? Talk about metal penetration! And once they start up, not much will put them out till their dun... hours.
Several cell phone companies have been fined over $100,000. each for inappropriately shipping Li-Ions. Guess they should have had more than minimum wage employees in their shipping departments! Or perhaps just someone who reads and cares.
Four inches crush space in packaging, cargo aircraft only, or carry on with terminals tapped off, and UN / ODOT Certification, is required by both USA and international law. Any Li-Ion battery that has physical damage should not be transported except by rail or truck and special labeling.
Custom assembled Li-Ion packs can be catastrophic for the owner, even if the individual cells are UN certified. Governments are saying "same rules and liabilities for any and all individual owners of Li-Ions". If individual cells are custom assembled in a pack, approval "is off" for UN / ODOT certification regardless. Proving it was actually an engineering prototype is suppose to be an exception, however, may be of little help if someone or a company is out as much as they can be out. Exactly how much does a DC-3 cost?
Li-Ion are however, some of the highest amp portable batteries you can get. That is why they are used and common in most the cell phone and lap tops. They are relatively safe as long as they are built properly which UN / ODOT certification assures, and are not severely smashed or physically damaged. Oh... and you don't want to do the tongue test either!
Most are converting to Nickel Metal Hydride as they are tame in comparison regarding volatility, lighter weight, and nearly, perhaps, comparable. Trouble is some devices simply need the amps and too big / heavy is not an option.
Howard
