It is basic chemistry. Lithium has the highest combustion energy with oxygen or fluorine than any other element (except beryllium). This means it will burn the oxygen out of water, carbon dioxide, calcium carbonate (limestone powder), sand (silicon dioxide), iron oxide, etc. It will burn the fluorine out of any halocarbon fire extinguishing agent (as the firefighters at the 787 lithium battery fire in Boston discovered) or fluorinated plastic (like Teflon). Literally, the only way to extinguish a lithium fire is to smother it in a layer of molten metal (Class D extinguisher). (Spraying it with liquid nitrogen or argon is possible, but not really feasible.)
Think of how tenacious a magnesium fire is and then double it in intensity. Imagine such vehicles parked closely together (as in parking garages) and one of them lights off. Like so many piles of lumber impregnated with phosphorus.
It is basic chemistry. Lithium has the highest combustion energy with oxygen or fluorine than any other element (except beryllium). This means it will burn the oxygen out of water, carbon dioxide, calcium carbonate (limestone powder), sand (silicon dioxide), iron oxide, etc. It will burn the fluorine out of any halocarbon fire extinguishing agent (as the firefighters at the 787 lithium battery fire in Boston discovered) or fluorinated plastic (like Teflon). Literally, the only way to extinguish a lithium fire is to smother it in a layer of molten metal (Class D extinguisher). (Spraying it with liquid nitrogen or argon is possible, but not really feasible.)
Think of how tenacious a magnesium fire is and then double it in intensity. Imagine such vehicles parked closely together (as in parking garages) and one of them lights off. Like so many piles of lumber impregnated with phosphorus.