Transport Labeling of Batteries

Lithium-ion batteries are subject to extensive international dangerous goods regulations during transport. These specify, among other things, the requirements for packaging, transport documents, labeling of packages and vehicles, and safe handling during transport.

Provisions for some types of batteries have long existed in the regulations for the transport of dangerous goods.
However, in recent years, lithium batteries in particular have been caught in the crossfire of discussion due to more or less nasty accidents and incidents, and the transport of these batteries/accumulators has been subject to increasingly stringent regulations.

CLASSIFICATION IN DANGEROUS GOODS TRANSPORT LAW
Depending on the size and type of battery/accumulator, they also pose different potential dangers, which led to a number of exceptions, special regulations and subdivisions in the individual dangerous goods transport regulations.

Below is an overview of the various entries currently available for batteries/accumulators.

UN No — Shipping Name — Cl.
UN2794 — BATTERIES (ACCUMULATORS), WET, FILLED WITH ACID — 8
UN2794 — BATTERIES (ACCUMULATORS), WET, FILLED WITH ALKALIS — 8
UN2800 — BATTERIES (ACCUMULATORS), WET, LEAK-PROOF — 8
UN3090 — LITHIUM METAL BATTERIES — 9 (9A)
UN3091 — LITHIUM METAL BATTERIES IN EQUIPMENT — 9 (9A)
UN3091 — LITHIUM METAL BATTERIES PACKED WITH EQUIPMENT — 9 (9A)
UN3028 — BATTERIES (ACCUMULATORS), DRY, POTASSIUM HYDROXIDE, SOLID, CONTAINING — 8
UN3171 — BATTERY-POWERED VEHICLE — 9
UN3171 — BATTERY-POWERED APPLIANCE — 9
UN3292 — SODIUM BATTERIES — 4.3
UN3480 — LITHIUM-ION BATTERIES — 9 (9A)
UN3481 — LITHIUM-ION BATTERIES IN EQUIPMENT — 9 (9A)
UN3481 — LITHIUM-ION BATTERIES, PACKED WITH EQUIPMENT — 9 (9A)
UN3496 — batteries, nickel metal hydride — 9
excluding other batteries – alkaline-manganese, zinc-carbon and nickel-cadmium batteries, etc.

UN No. = four-digit number of the United Nations (classification of dangerous goods)
Shipping Name = Shipping description/ label (Versandbezeichnung)
Cl. = class of dangerous goods

For further details about battery nomenclature you might visit the following page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battery_nomenclature

The correct labeling of battery transports is not only relevant for safety reasons, but only in this way can it be ensured that a corresponding transport is not delayed, rejected or made significantly more expensive.