# Complex Battery Storage Fire Propagation Translational Forensic Study Using Cellular Automata
## 1 Introduction
The specific characteristics of different battery cell types (such as cylindrical, pouch, or hard-cased) can significantly influence the spread of fire, thereby affecting the fire's intensity and the strategies implemented for suppression. Most existing studies concentrate on the cell level and the analysis of the thermal runaway (TR) phenomenon in LIB, with limited studies examining the impacts of battery fire at the pack level. [PERSON] et al. [11] showed that the TR propagation hazard associated with a LIB pack can exceed that of a single battery due to the increased heat generated during TR in a pack. [PERSON] et al. [12] investigated LIB fires in enclosed spaces, revealing that the heightened fire hazards are primarily due to increased heat flux. However, there is no universally accepted testing protocol for these scenarios, leading several researchers to create their  
Figure 3: Translational forensics framework for battery safety. own experimental setups to gather data on fire characteristics during thermal runaway [13]. Furthermore, there are few published safety design guidelines, highlighting a significant gap in standard practice for battery storage facility design [14]. Assessing battery rack fires typically involves real-time power flow monitoring via battery management systems (BMSs) or the use of fire, gas, or smoke detection systems [15; 16; 17; 18]. These systems may also incorporate thermal sensors such as thermocouples and infrared thermography. Unfortunately, extensive tests specifically designed for large-scale battery fires are not conducted frequently. As mentioned earlier, most test results are kept confidential. Consequently, research on LIB thermal runaway is still predominantly focused at  
Figure 4: Advancing knowledge and implementation via the translational forensic platform. Figure 5: Technical processes supporting the establishment of reliable insights into battery fire structures. the cell level, and there is a limited body of literature available on modular to full-scale fire propagation studies. This is especially true regarding the impacts of battery fire propagation on existing infrastructure. Fire propagation research related to fire spread in built environments has been extensively conducted and applied. This field encompasses a range of focus areas including the estimation of fire emissions, the dynamics of wildfire spread, and the impact of external structures on fire behavior. Studies have examined several factors, such as enhancing the fire resistance of structures in wildland-urban interfaces by analyzing fire pathways and the separation distance to ornamental vegetation [19]. Furthermore, research has employed GIS-based models to simulate wildfire propagation while taking into account spatial and temporal factors [20]. There is also an emphasis on forecasting fire propagation using methods like cellular automata, which effectively visualize fire spread [21; 22; 23; 24]. As early as the 1980s, the automata method has been proposed for 2D fire propagation simulation [25]. Researchers, including [PERSON] and [PERSON] [26] and [PERSON] and [PERSON] [27], have further demonstrated the effectiveness of the CA technique in modeling forest fires. CA models simulate highly complex phenomena using computer algorithms. [PERSON] outlined five general principles governing cellular automata: (1) the algorithms follow a universal set of logical operations; (2) the automaton (or element) functions based on the principle of constructability; (3) the construction process is universal; (4) the construction process is self-generating (self-reproductive); and (5) self-reproduction should facilitate the spread of fire by incorporating dynamic neighborhood structures and spatial data, thus enabling the prediction of fire states with quantified uncertainty [28]. These methodologies enhance our understanding of fire propagation, which is crucial for emergency planning and informed decision-making. For instance, [PERSON] et al.