In the "not so merry christmas" department, the DOT is banning rechargeable Lithium batteries from checked luggage (unless they are installed in devices) and allowing a maximum of 2 in carry-on effective January 1 (nice way to give everyone time to adjust to the new rules, I might add:-))

The link to the actual press release is on the home page, but I'm sure a lot more explanation will need to be forthcoming as it is a little hard to decipher.

For example it shows a photo of an external Li-Ion battery pack as being banned, but I'm sure their makers (I use 2, one from APC and one from batterygeek.net) will claim that their electronics make them harmless as long as they are turned off, just like any allowable device.

And then the article also says that something as simple as putting the batteries in a plastic bag can make them safe, so why not just require that the batteries be in plastic bags?

I can already see a market for "dummy cameras" which are really just battery holders?

Perhaps worst is the possible implementation hassles. Without actually looking I'm not sure how operators will know if batteries are NiMH or Li-Ion. It's also not clear what size Li-Ion are affected. Reading between the lines the tiny ones for phones & point & shoots seems safe, but ones for laptops, D-SLRs and larger videocameras appear to be targeted.

Let us know your thoughts & your experiences as the rule rolls out over the holidays!--David

Another confusing piece of the press release is that while the entire release refers to rechargeables for laptops and cameras the "evidentiary" quote refers to non-rechargeables, as follows:

"Safety testing conducted by the FAA found that current aircraft cargo fire suppression system would not be capable of suppressing a fire if a shipment of non-rechargeable lithium batteries were ignited in flight"

This has caused some of the news coverage to refer to AA Lithium batteries, which of course would be yet again different and cause a different set of issues if they are affected.--David

David,
I just read the governement press release and it seems to indicate that if you keep these batteries in their original containers all should be well?
Then again, we are dealing with the guvment.
Eric

When TSA discovers they can't readily tell the difference between different kind of batteries, they will probably ban all batteries. I hope I am wrong, but government agencies tend to think this way.

Eric--The quote in the press release does indeed indicate what you're saying, but is contradicted by the "policy statement" in the release which doesn't make allowances for that. So we can only hope they'll say something like "banned if not appropriately cased or covered" but that may take a while to sort out, at best.--David

PS David R. -- That would sure be awful if you're right, but I wouldn't count it out.

Via Roberts, some more data on batteries and their Lithium content:

Lesley Ann Miller of LAT Photographic has taken the time to provide the following information regarding the Lithium Battery/TSA carry on headache we all will face in the new year. I would suggest keeping the information with your equipment so you can better educate your friendly TSA agents the next time you fly. A special thanks to Lesley for taking the time to do this.

Canon EOS-1D Mark III (LP-E4)
11.1v 2300mAh
25.53 watt-hours
2.0424 grams lithium content
Canon 40D/5D (BP-511A)
7.4v 1390mAh
10.286 watt-hours
0.82288 grams lithium content
Nikon D3 (EN-EL4a)
11.1v 2500mAh
27.75 watt-hours
2.22 grams lithium content
Nikon D300 (EN-EL3e)
7.4v, 1500mAh
11.1 watt-hours
0.888 grams lithium content

Rob Galbraith has on his web page a nice collection of links to this topic: http://www.robgalbraith.com/bins/content_page.asp?cid=7-9206-9208

Here is a copy of the text; I guess to get the links you have to go to his web page:

"Revised Lithium battery transport regulations for passenger aircraft now in effect
Wednesday, January 2, 2008 | by Rob Galbraith
If you're traveling with your cameras and other battery-operated equipment to, from or within the USA - and perhaps elsewhere around the world - expanded rules governing the transport of batteries containing Lithium means careful planning of how many rechargeable battery packs you carry with you, and how you carry them.

Here are links to various sources of information. Note that while most recent news coverage has focused on new U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) regulations that went into effect January 1, 2008, they are similar to or the same as existing International Air Transport Association's (IATA) dangerous goods regulations, which are followed by numerous airlines worldwide.

* New US DOT Hazmat Safety Rule to Place Lithium Battery Limits in Carry-on Baggage on Passenger Aircraft Effective January 1, 2008 (press release)
* Safe Travel with Batteries and Devices (U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA))
*
Summary of new U.S. DOT regulations (SafeTravel.dot.gov)
*
Spare Battery Tips (SafeTravel.dot.gov)
*
How to pack spare batteries (SafeTravel.dot.gov)
* Lithium Ion FAQs (Portable Rechargeable Battery Association)
* Restrictions on batteries (Westjet; click on link on page for more info)
* Excerpt of IATA dangerous goods regulations (Frezzi Energy Systems)
* TSA Lithium Battery Restrictions (Photographer Michael Chang)
* Li-Ion Battery Ban Solution for Airline Travel (Photo Business News & Forum)"

If you've seen the various internet videos of laptops catching fire, it's a valid concern in my opinion.

Perhaps they'll get more reasonable in the future (such as plastic bags or electrically insulated storage containers or something.)

Yes, although the irony is the videos tend to be of laptops catching fire while the regulation doesn't affect them--only loose batteries. The concern is certainly valid I just wish the solution had been a little more carefully crafted & perhaps "marketed" by getting feedback & publicizing it before the "day of." Sounds like someone in the USG had a bonus goal riding on having it done by 12/31!--David

I just got this update from Sean, the CEO at Batterygeek.net (who makes the Portable Power Supply I love). It is very encouraging about their PPS both because of all the safety work they've put into it but also interestingly it is < 8g of Lithium, even though it is a 130Watt-Hour (read LARGE) battery, so clearly the actual technology in each battery greatly effects how much lithium is required:

Hi David,

Thank you for your good question. My apologies for this belated reply. The holidays have been crazy around here. Can you believe it's already 2008?
There are 8 Lithium-ion cells in our Portable Power Station Battery Packs.

According to 1/1/2008 DOT & FAA regulations regarding the air transport of lithium-ion batteries (see attached) all of our external battery packs are allowed for use in airports and aboard their commercial airplanes.

Attached is the MSDS of our external laptop battery. As you can see we use LG cells and also please note that the lithium content of the anode of each cell, when fully charged, is .66G and the aggregate lithium content of the anodes of each battery, when fully charged, is not more than 8G.

Also, please know that we have always taken the safety of our external lithium-ion battery packs very seriously and that all of our external battery packs are manufactured in our ISO 9001:2000 certified factory. All of our battery packs are RoHS compliant and FAA approved for use in airports and aboard airplanes. Our battery packs are safe and also fully protected against thermal run away (overheating). It is also completely safe and effective to always keep our battery packs plugged in and to recharge them whenever it is convenient without any loss in performance because they have no memory effect. Ever since we started manufacturing our external battery packs back in 2002 there have never been any recalls nor have there ever been any safety related incidents.

All of our external battery packs have been designed and manufactured with a PCB (Protective Circuit Board) which provides the following internal protective safety features:

1. Internal battery safety protection against thermal run away (overheating).

2. Internal battery safety protection against over charging.

3. Internal battery safety protection against over discharge.

4. Internal battery safety protection against over voltage and over current.

5. Internal battery safety protection against short circuit.

Please feel free to print out the two attached documents along with this e-mail should any airport personnel have any concerns regarding our external lithium-ion battery pack however we are confident that you will not have any problems traveling through airports and airplanes with our safe batteries.

Best regards,

Sean Murray
Battery Geek Inc.
http://www.batterygeek.net