Originally Posted by
SonicFlyer
Ah, so like a magnesium fire?
Technically, no.
Metal fires still need O2 but they burn so hot that they are just hard to put out (also hard to start). In some cases they can be hot enough to cause nearby compounds to break down and provide an oxidizer to support the fire in the absence of air. Oxygen is not the only potential oxidizer, especially if you have enough heat.
Li battery fires actually have two things going on...
The chemical energy stored in the battery is released via a short-circuit, generating a lot of current and therefore a lot of heat. This heat causes anything nearby to burn, including the battery compounds and adjacent cells, which then of course trigger a chain reaction as long as there are more batteries close by.
You can't really extinguish it, you just have to keep it cool while it discharges it's energy.
A large number of batteries (ie commercial shipment) would not be controllable once it gets going. Requirements to ship batteries with a lower state of charge reduce the risk.