The UN Sub-Committee of Experts on the Transport of Dangerous Goods met in Geneva, Switzerland in June and July to address amendments to the international dangerous goods regulations governing the transport of lithium and sodium ion batteries and other dangerous goods. PRBA filed four Working Documents with the Sub-Committee that address the following issues:
- Amendments to the T.5 External Short Circuit test in the lithium battery testing requirements found in Sub-section 38.3 of the UN Manual of Test and Criteria (“UN38.3”). The Sub-Committee approved the proposed changes in PRBA’s proposal.
- Amendments to the UN’s Model Dangerous Goods Regulations to address the implications of repairing, refurbishing, and remanufacturing lithium batteries.
- Amendments to the UN38.3 tests that would clarify how testing out of sequence could be authorized.
- Amendments to the definition of “rupture” in the UN38.3 test.
The Sub-Committee was generally in agreement with the proposed amendments in #3 and #4 above and PRBA plans to follow up with revised proposal for the November 2024 Sub-Committee meeting. The PRBA Transportation Committee is scheduled to meet in September to discuss the outcome of the UN Sub-Committee’s work and prepare for the November meeting.
For more information on these developments, please contact Marc Boolish at 202.719.7170 or [email protected].