Battery Certification

What is UN38.3 certification

UN38.3 refers to paragraph 38. 3 of Part 3 of the UN Manual of Tests and Criteria for the Transport of Dangerous Goods, which is specially formulated by the United Nations for the transport of dangerous goods, that is, lithium batteries are required to pass the height simulation, high and low temperature cycles, vibration test, shock test, 55℃ external short circuit, impact test, overcharge test and forced discharge test before transporting to ensure the safety of lithium batteries. If the lithium battery is not installed with the equipment, and each package contains more than 24 cells or 12 batteries, it must also pass the 1.2m free fall test.

Usually referred to as UN38.3 certification, in fact, refers to the lithium battery after UN38.3 provisions of the test report, and apply for the General Administration of Civil Aviation authorized 13 certification companies, the issuance of aviation safety certification. Therefore, UN38.3 certification usually includes: UN38.3 report and aviation safety certification.

Why do we need UN38.3 certification?

Lithium batteries need to comply with the International Air Transport Association (IATA) Dangerous Goods Regulations (DGR) for air transport and the International Maritime Organization's International Maritime Dangerous Goods Regulations (IMDG) for sea transport. According to the current rules, the premise of lithium battery transportation is that it must have a test report that meets the requirements of UN38.3, as well as the identification report that proves that it meets the new version of DGR and IMDG rules for cargo transportation conditions, and if necessary, a 1.2m drop test report at the same time.

UN38.3 certification and MSDS what is the difference

Usually many people do battery testing, confuse UN38.3 and MSDS or think it is the same certification, which has a very big impact on the testing. MSDS is a chemical safety technical specification, a document on the composition of lithium batteries and emergency treatment, UN38.3 is a safety test for lithium batteries. Because the lithium battery to be transported by air, often required to provide UN38.3 and MSDS together, so many people mistakenly believe that UN38.3 is MSDS.

UN38.3 certification and aviation safety certification

Aviation safety certification is a certificate obtained after passing the UN38.3 test report for lithium batteries and applying to the authorized agency of the General Administration of Civil Aviation.

UN38.3 certification product range

1. various power lithium secondary batteries (such as batteries for power vehicles, batteries for electric road vehicles, batteries for power tools, batteries for hybrid vehicles, etc.)

2. All kinds of cell phone lithium batteries (such as lithium-ion batteries, lithium polymer batteries, etc.)

3. various small lithium secondary batteries (such as laptop batteries, digital camera batteries, camcorder batteries, various cylindrical batteries, wireless communication batteries, portable DVD batteries, CD and MP3 player batteries, etc.)

4. a variety of lithium primary batteries (such as lithium button batteries, lithium manganese batteries, etc.)

UN38.3 Certification test items and purposes

T.1 Height simulation test

Purpose: This test simulates air transport under low pressure conditions.

T.2 Thermal test

Purpose: This test evaluates the sealing perfection and internal electrical connections of cells and battery packs. The test is conducted using rapid and extreme temperature changes.

T.3 Vibration Test

Purpose: This test simulates vibration during transport.

T.4 Shock Test

Purpose: This test evaluates the degree of tolerance of the cell and battery to cumulative shock effects.

T.5 External Short Circuit Test

Purpose: This test simulates external short circuit.

T.6 Impact Test

Purpose: The test in this section simulates mechanical damage such as impact or crush that may cause an internal short circuit.

T.7 Overcharge Test

Purpose: This test evaluates the ability of a rechargeable battery pack or rechargeable single cell battery pack to withstand an overcharge condition.

T.8 forced discharge test

Purpose: This test assesses the ability of the original battery or rechargeable battery to withstand forced discharge conditions.

UN38.3 similar testing standards

The basics of UN38.3 certification and its requirements

Lithium batteries are considered hazardous, and as such, they must comply with certain shipping provisions set forth in the global UN 38.3 standard. This testing standard is part of good regulations for hazards and focuses on their transportation, not their electrical safety.

Therefore, it considers all points where lithium batteries can be transported, from: sub-suppliers to end-product manufacturers; manufacturers, distributors, products inside and outside the product, on-site, product returns or non-original packaging.

It requires several tests:

1. Tests 1-5 on the same sample for all battery types in turn:

a. Height simulation (test T1)

b, thermal test (test T2)

c, vibration (test T3)

d, shock (test T4)

External short circuit (test T5)

2. Test T6 performed on primary and secondary cells to assess shock and crush

3. Test T7 is used on secondary cells to assess the effects of overcharging

4. Test T8 also performed on primary and secondary cells to assess forced discharge

UN38.3 Required information for application

1. Application form

2. Specification

3. Battery manufacturer ISO system certificate, quality manual

4. If you need to apply for a certificate of identification required information as follows:

(1) commission information

(2) Package picture

UN38.3 certification process

1.Sign the quotation

2. Send sample and submit information

3.Testing

4.Application for certification

5.Issuing report

What is the positive impact of doing UN38.3 certification?

1. A full set of transportation safety tests for various lithium batteries to ensure transportation safety and also product quality assurance.

2. Ensure the normal transportation of products.

3. Promote the cooperation with end customers.

UN38.3 certification how much (for reference only, call for specific advice)

Certification needs to be decided according to the battery capacity / specifications (charge and discharge time, test equipment).

How much V, how much Ah, how much Wh?

There is a simple and crude algorithm is that below 100Wh, the cost is around several thousand dollars.

UN38.3 certification cycle

UN38.3 certification cycle of 12-15 working days, the gross weight of the air can not exceed 10KG, the gross weight of the sea can not exceed 30KG

Gross weight: the weight of the product plus the box

Net weight: the weight of individual products

UN38.3 certification report validity

UN38.3 report is generally valid for two years, according to regulations UN38.3 standard is updated every two natural years, that is to say, the report must be updated every two years. 2020 UN38.3 standard was updated, the current version of the sixth edition of Amendment I. Other general and UN38.3 report supporting the MSDS, air transport identification, sea transport identification are a year, valid from January 1 of the year the report and identification issued to December 31 of the year.