A Review of Nail Penetration and Thermal Abuse Tests of Lithium-Ion Batteries and Their Emission Characterization

Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are pivotal in electric vehicles (EVs), grid storage, and portable electronics, but their high energy density introduces safety risks, particularly thermal runaway (TR). TR can lead to fires, explosions, and hazardous emissions, posing severe health and environmental threats. Experimental investigation of TR commonly relies on abuse testing methods, among which mechanical abuse via nail penetration (NP) and thermal abuse (TA) are widely used to simulate crash-induced and heat-driven failure scenarios, respectively. This review provides a comprehensive and comparative synthesis of NP and TA testing methodologies, examining how variations in test configuration, cell parameters (capacity, state of charge, and chemistry), and environmental conditions influence TR behavior and emission characteristics. Particular emphasis is placed on comparing reported emission profiles from NP- and TA-triggered TR events, including CO2, CO, HF, hydrocarbons, and solvent vapors, and identifying the methodological origins of discrepancies across studies. By systematically linking emission variability to gas collection methods, analytical techniques, and data normalization approaches, this review highlights key limitations in current testing standards related to emission characterization. Finally, recommendations are offered for harmonizing abuse testing protocols and improving experimental design to enhance reproducibility, enabling meaningful cross-study comparison, and supporting safer deployment of LIBs in high-risk applications such as EVs and grid-scale energy storage.