Abstract: In view of that a slew of incidents caused by self-balancing electric air board have occurred lately, we as consumers must have right to be informed of the reason about those unexpected tragedies. Experts from Materials Science & Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University say batteries craftsmanship is vital for a scooter.
It's reported that all the hoverboards present in the incidents are equipped with cheap yet shoddy lithium-ion batteries so that they led to fire hazards and explosions. Professor, Jay Whitacre form Materials Science & Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University says that the problem doesn't have to these self-balancing scooters themselves, but with the quality of the batteries being used.
Whitacre says, “They're known as low cost li-ion batteries by most in the industry—they are not knockoffs or copies, but are instead just mass-manufactured cells.”
What does make the batteries susceptible to damage? It's not just the nature of a cheap one, but it's the nature of any lithium-ion battery. That is to say high-quality batteries inside electric hoverboard also have the hidden danger. In a cheap battery, the separator between each battery's anode and cathode which are what the current flows through may not be aligned correctly.
Image it like this: The cathode is at one end of the battery, the anode at the other, and the separator is between them; its job is to keep them apart to avoid short circuits. That requires workers in the factories must be careful to fit the battery pack.
The batteries in electric scooters may not be the only problem. It's less common, but a defective charger could also cause problems with any two-wheel electric scooter. The useful suggestion is to get a big brand like Airwheel or Segway if you want to play. The words from the professor just give a sound tip for manufacturers to do nice in batteries craftsmanship.