Does the Element fire extinguisher work on a lithium battery fire?Updated 4 hours ago

No. No standard extinguisher on the current market fully addresses a lithium battery thermal runaway event. Standard fire extinguishers include CO2 (carbon dioxide) and ABC/dry chemical extinguishers. 

A thermal runaway is a self-sustaining electrochemical reaction that generates its own fuel and oxygen. Standard extinguisher agents, including those offered by an Element Fire Extinguisher, are designed to interrupt combustion by removing one leg of the fire triangle. Thermal runaway does not depend on any of those legs in the conventional sense.

These can knock down surface flames, but they don’t cool the battery cells enough to fully stop thermal runaway. Therefore, the battery will re-ignite. A specialty fire suppression product is required for lithium battery thermal runaway.

More information can be found in Fire Safety USA's blog, "Lithium Battery Fire Extinguisher Options—What Actually Works."