Samples ambient air near battery storage or charging areas.
How IonSniff works
Electrolyte vapor detection for lithium battery safety.
IonSniff monitors for airborne indicators associated with lithium battery electrolyte leakage, venting, or damage.
Inside the cell
What is inside a lithium battery?
Lithium-ion batteries commonly use electrolyte formulations that help lithium ions move between electrodes. These formulations often include organic carbonate solvents, blended with salts and additives depending on the cell design.
Exact chemistry varies by manufacturer and battery type. Common electrolyte solvent examples may include:
Dimethyl carbonate, DMC
Diethyl carbonate, DEC
Ethyl methyl carbonate, EMC
Ethylene carbonate, EC
Why leakage matters
Battery problems may show indicators before visible smoke in some failure cases.
Physical damage, manufacturing defects, overcharging, aging, heat exposure, or abuse can lead to leakage, venting, swelling, or other failure modes. In some failure cases, electrolyte vapor indicators may appear before visible smoke.
Physical damage
Manufacturing defects
Overcharging
Aging
Heat exposure
Electrical or mechanical abuse
What IonSniff monitors
Ambient air, abnormal signatures, and alert thresholds.
Looks for abnormal vapor signatures associated with electrolyte leakage.
Uses signal processing to distinguish normal background air from suspicious battery-related vapor events.
Alerts the user when detection thresholds or patterns are met.
If it alerts
Treat an alert as a reason to check the battery environment carefully.
IonSniff is designed to increase awareness. It does not diagnose every battery condition or remove the need for emergency judgment.
Stop charging nearby batteries if safe to do so.
Avoid handling hot, swollen, smoking, hissing, or leaking batteries.
Ventilate only if safe and move away if there are signs of heat, smoke, fire, irritation, or chemical exposure.
Follow local emergency guidance and contact emergency services if there is immediate danger.
Inspect batteries only when safe.
Replace or professionally dispose of suspicious batteries.
What IonSniff is not
A focused early-warning layer, not a safety guarantee.
IonSniff is an early-warning sensor designed to detect certain airborne indicators associated with lithium battery electrolyte leakage. It is not a smoke detector, carbon monoxide detector, fire alarm, or guarantee against battery fire. Always follow battery manufacturer instructions, local fire safety guidance, and emergency procedures.
If IonSniff alerts, stop charging nearby batteries if safe, avoid handling hot/swollen/smoking batteries, ventilate only if safe, and contact emergency services if there are signs of fire, smoke, heat, chemical exposure, or immediate danger.
Lab testing
Developed through controlled testing.
IonSniff uses a lab-tested detection approach, with additional public performance documentation coming as validation expands.
Controlled test protocol
This area informs detection tuning and ongoing validation documentation.
Representative electrolyte vapor conditions
This area informs detection tuning and ongoing validation documentation.
Response data used for tuning
This area informs detection tuning and ongoing validation documentation.
Fast-detection behavior under tested conditions
This area informs detection tuning and ongoing validation documentation.
Recovery behavior documentation
This area informs detection tuning and ongoing validation documentation.
Environmental validation in progress
This area informs detection tuning and ongoing validation documentation.
Interference testing in progress
This area informs detection tuning and ongoing validation documentation.
Testing background
This area informs detection tuning and ongoing validation documentation.
Validation status
This area informs detection tuning and ongoing validation documentation.
Detection speed and performance depend on vapor concentration, airflow, distance from the battery, enclosure conditions, battery chemistry, temperature, humidity, and interfering vapors. IonSniff is an early-warning layer and is not a guarantee against battery fire.