A C182 pilot wearing a sound attenuating headset that used a NUON 9V battery reported that on three occasions a NUON 9V battery had exploded or overheated in the the aircraft in flight.

Narrative

My concern stems from a trend I first experienced in October of 2008. I did not report my initial incident since I had attributed it to be a single occurrence. Since then I've had two other incidents involving 'NUON' 9V batteries. This is the brand issued to me for use in my David Clark ANR's. I was on an IFR flight plan and had departed 17L and in a right turn into marginal IMC. Climbing through about 3;500 FT MSL; I heard a loud pop noise and felt something hit me in the face just to the right of my right eye. I also smelled a faint sulfur like odor. I looked down in the right front passengers floorboard where I had a Cessna cup and item holder sitting. In one of the small compartments of the holder I noticed my spare 'NUON' 9V that I stored there for convenience if needed. It had blown up. The top of the battery had literally blown off the battery. A white or lite bluish paste like substance had scattered around the cockpit. It was some of this substance that struck me next to my right eye. Five days later; I was on another flight in VFR conditions at 6;500 FT MSL when I smelled something getting hot. A bit of a pungent electrical like smell. I had started storing my NUON 9V batteries in their box since the incident 5 days earlier. I opened the box and found that one of the new batteries was so hot it was melting the exterior cover & too hot to hold. I tossed the entire box into a small ice chest I had in the back seat for safe keeping until landing. Very recently While flying I was level in VFR conditions at about 3;000 FT MSL when the battery cover on my David Clark ANR battery box popped off. I looked at it closer and saw that the side of yet another 'NUON' 9V had blown away. I removed the battery and continued on without my ANR's functioning. I no longer use this brand of batteries and buy my own quality batteries. It is in my opinion that the 'NUON' 9V batteries constitute the possibility of an in-flight safety hazard.