With the increasing global focus on environmental issues, controlling carbon dioxide emissions has become an important global agenda. In this context, the development of new energy vehicles, such as electric vehicles, is flourishing. However, as a crucial power source for electric vehicles, the safety performance of lithium-ion batteries under mechanical abuse has drawn widespread attention. Evaluating the safety performance of lithium-ion batteries requires in-depth research. This paper provides a review of recent experimental and numerical simulation studies on the mechanical abuse of lithium-ion batteries. It showcases the main methods and conclusions of experimental research, compares different response forms under quasi-static and dynamic loading, discusses the causes of strain-rate dependence in lithium-ion batteries, and briefly describes the impact of the state of charge (SOC) on safety performance under mechanical abuse, as well as the influence of mechanical abuse on battery capacity and impedance characteristics. Furthermore, this paper summarizes the methods of numerical simulation research, analyzes the advantages and disadvantages of detailed modeling and homogenized modeling methods, summarizes the strain-based internal short circuit failure criteria, and reviews numerical predictive models based on multiphysics coupling. Finally, it presents the latest progress in studying the safety performance of battery packs through numerical simulations.

Deformations in lithium-ion batteries, which may lead to thermal runaway, can occur during storage and transportation handling, as well as in road use. In this study, both radial and axial compression deformation were produced experimentally to analyze their influence on the performance and safety of lithium-ion batteries. In the radial plate compression experiment, the battery was loaded to different displacements and then charge–discharge cycles were performed. It was found that the greater the deformation of the battery, the smaller the initial capacity and the faster the capacity decay. Under axial loading, the voltage of low state of charge (SOCs) batteries showed a clear step-drop phenomenon. The battery was compressed until the first voltage drop, loading was stopped, and the voltage gradually dropped to 0 V. For high-SOC lithium-ion batteries, there was almost no voltage step-down, and a small deformation could cause thermal runaway in the battery. The results showed that the small deformation in the radial direction only reduced the capacity of the battery, but had little impact on its safety, whereas a small deformation in the axial direction was more likely to cause an internal short circuit (ISC).

To explore the failure modes of high-Ni batteries under different axial loads, quasi-static compression and dynamic impact tests were carried out. The characteristics of voltage, load, and temperature of a battery cell with different states of charge (SOCs) were investigated in quasi-static tests. The mechanical response and safety performance of lithium-ion batteries subjected to axial shock wave impact load were also investigated by using a split Hopkinson pressure bar (SHPB) system. Different failure modes of the battery were identified. Under quasi-static axial compression, the intensity of thermal runaway becomes more severe with the increase in SOC and loading speed, and the time for lithium-ion batteries to reach complete failure decreases with the increase in SOC. In comparison, under dynamic SHPB experiments, an internal short circuit occurred after impact, but no violent thermal runaway was observed.

During the charging and discharging process of a lithium-ion power battery, the intercalation and deintercalation of lithium-ion can cause volume change in the jellyroll and internal stress change in batteries as well, which may lead to battery failures and safety issues. A mathematical model based on a plane strain hypothesis was established to predict stresses in both the radial and hoop directions, with the hoop stress of each winding layer of the jellyroll obtained. Displacements of the steel case, the jellyroll, and the core of the battery during the charging and discharging processes were also analyzed, with the effect of lithium-ion concentration and the battery size discussed. The research results can explain well the wrinkling and fracture of the jellyroll.

Split Hopkinson pressure bar technique has been widely used to measure the dynamic tensile strength of concrete materials. Most experimental results show that the tensile strength of concrete material increases with strain rates. However, the dynamic tensile strength derived from the split Hopkinson pressure bar test is affected by lateral inertia confinement, which may lead to the overestimation of dynamic mechanical properties of concrete materials. The true dynamic characteristics of concrete materials are not actually shown by experimental data. It is impossible to completely eliminate the influence of lateral inertia confinement in split Hopkinson pressure bar tests. In this study, a rate-insensitive material model is used in commercial finite element software to study how the lateral inertia confinement affects the dynamic tensile strength of concrete material at strain rates between 30/s and 150/s. Comparison of finite element results and split Hopkinson pressure bar test results shows that the dynamic tensile strength enhancement of concrete materials is strongly influenced by the inertial effect. The dynamic increase factor of concrete materials which remove the influence of lateral inertia confinement in split Hopkinson pressure bar tests can reflect the true dynamic characteristics of concrete materials. It is also found that the influence of lateral inertia confinement is related to the size of the specimen.

We synthesize Sb/Sb₂O₃ nanoparticles by the oxidation of Sb nanoparticles at 100, 200, and 300 °C. The half sodium-ion batteries with Sb/Sb₂O₃-200 exhibit the optimal performance with a charge capacity of 540 mAh g⁻¹ after 100 cycles at 0.1 A g⁻¹, maintaining up to six times more capacity than pure Sb, and superior rate performance with 95.7% retention after cycling at varied current densities. One reason for this is that Sb/Sb₂O₃-200 is at exactly the optimum ratio of Sb₂O₃:Sb and the particle size of Sb/Sb₂O₃ to ensure both high capacity for Na⁺ and small stress during sodiation/desodiation, which is confirmed by the diffusion–stress coupled results. It indicates that increasing the ratio of Sb₂O₃:Sb causes a decrease of Mises equivalent stress, radial stress, and tangential stress in the range of 1:1–3.5:1, and an increase in the range of 3.5:1–4:1. These stresses decrease with a particle radius in the range of 30–50 nm and increase with a particle radius in the range of 50–70 nm. Additionally, another reason is related to the formation of cycling-induced coral-like Sb, which can promote Na⁺ diffusion, relieve cycling-induced volume changes, and provide exceptional Na⁺ storage.