Power battery pack with thermal insulation component

Abstract

The present invention relates to a power battery pack, which includes at least one battery pack assembly, each battery pack assembly includes: a battery module array, which includes a plurality of battery modules arranged along an arrangement direction, each battery module includes a plurality of battery cells, a battery cell insulation element is arranged between adjacent battery cells, and module insulation elements are arranged on both sides of each battery module in the arrangement direction; a top assembly and a bottom assembly respectively located at the top and bottom of the plurality of battery modules; side beams respectively arranged on both sides of the battery module array in a direction perpendicular to the arrangement direction, which extend approximately parallel to the arrangement direction; a smoke exhaust channel, which is connected to the outside through a valve, and the valve can discharge the gas in the smoke exhaust channel to the outside under set conditions. The module insulation element, the top assembly, the bottom assembly and the side beams are arranged to enclose each battery module in a module compartment. At least one of the side beams is provided with an exhaust port respectively connecting the smoke exhaust channel and each module compartment.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of vehicle technology, and in particular to a power battery pack for new energy vehicles. Background Art

[0002] The rapid development of the new energy vehicle market and the surging market demand have driven the upstream and downstream industrial chains of new energy vehicles to show a rapid growth trend. As one of the three core components of new energy vehicles, power batteries are increasingly attracting attention due to their high technical complexity, high cost share and high safety requirements.

[0003] As battery energy density increases, the safety risks of power batteries will show an upward trend, and most of these safety risks are caused by thermal runaway of battery cells. When a single battery cell experiences thermal runaway, the exothermic chain reaction causes the temperature to rise and triggers heat diffusion, which in turn causes the temperature of the remaining battery cells to become uncontrollable. At the same time, the high-temperature gas ejected during thermal runaway of the battery cell will heat the surrounding battery cells, thereby accelerating the process of thermal diffusion. The latest safety regulations for batteries used in electric vehicles have added requirements for thermal diffusion of power batteries, but the thermal runaway protection structure in the existing battery pack is difficult to meet this requirement.

[0004] Therefore, the art needs a new power battery pack to solve at least one of the above problems existing in the prior art. Summary of the invention

[0005] In view of this, an embodiment of the present invention provides a new power battery pack with a heat insulation component, thereby effectively solving or alleviating at least one of the current disadvantages.

[0006] One aspect of an embodiment of the present invention relates to a power battery pack, which includes at least one battery pack assembly, each of which includes:

[0007] A battery module array, comprising a plurality of battery modules arranged along a module arrangement direction, each of the battery modules comprising a plurality of battery cells, battery cell insulation elements being arranged between adjacent battery cells in the plurality of battery cells, and module insulation elements being arranged on both sides of each of the battery modules in the module arrangement direction;

[0008] a top assembly and a bottom assembly located at the top and bottom of the plurality of battery modules, respectively;

[0009] Side beams are respectively arranged on both sides of the battery module array in a direction perpendicular to the module arrangement direction and extend substantially parallel to the module arrangement direction; and

[0010] A smoke exhaust channel is connected to the outside of the power battery pack through a valve, and the valve can discharge the gas in the smoke exhaust channel to the outside under set conditions.

[0011] The module insulation element, the top component, the bottom component and the side beams are arranged to enclose each battery module in a module bin, and at least one of the side beams is provided with an exhaust port respectively connecting the smoke exhaust channel and each module bin.

[0012] In the power battery pack according to an embodiment of the present invention, optionally, an anti-backflow element is provided in the exhaust port, and the setting of the anti-backflow element allows the gas in the module compartment where thermal runaway occurs to be discharged to the smoke exhaust channel, and prevents the gas in the smoke exhaust channel from flowing back to the module compartment where thermal runaway does not occur.

[0013] In the power battery pack according to the embodiment of the present invention, optionally, a backflow prevention element for preventing backflow of gas in the smoke exhaust channel is provided in the exhaust port.

[0014] In the power battery pack according to the embodiment of the present invention, optionally, the backflow prevention element includes fireproof cotton.

[0015] In the power battery pack according to the embodiment of the present invention, optionally, the battery cell thermal insulation element includes at least one of an aerogel sheet, a mouth-shaped frame with a thermal insulation material inside, and a ceramic composite material thermal insulation pad.

[0016] In the power battery pack according to the embodiment of the present invention, optionally, the module thermal insulation element includes at least one of a mica sheet and a ceramic composite thermal insulation pad.

[0017] In the power battery pack according to the embodiment of the present invention, optionally, the top assembly includes a plurality of top heat insulation elements corresponding to the plurality of battery modules respectively.

[0018] In the power battery pack according to the embodiment of the present invention, optionally, the top assembly includes a common top heat insulating element covering the plurality of battery modules.

[0019] In the power battery pack according to the embodiment of the present invention, optionally, the arrangement direction of the battery cells in each of the battery modules is substantially perpendicular to the arrangement direction of the modules.

[0020] In the power battery pack according to the embodiment of the present invention, optionally, the smoke exhaust channel is provided on a side of the side beam having the exhaust port provided thereon, which is opposite to the battery module.

[0021] In the power battery pack according to the embodiment of the present invention, optionally, the smoke exhaust channel is filled with a filling material that can reduce the effective space in the smoke exhaust channel as needed.

[0022] In the power battery pack according to the embodiment of the present invention, optionally, the filling material includes a foaming material.

[0023] In the power battery pack according to an embodiment of the present invention, optionally, the power battery pack further includes a box body, and the at least one battery pack assembly includes two battery pack assemblies arranged side by side in the box body in a direction perpendicular to the module arrangement direction, and the smoke exhaust channel of each battery pack assembly is arranged between the side wall of the box body and the side beam having the exhaust port. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] The present invention will be further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments, but those skilled in the art will appreciate that these drawings are drawn only for the purpose of explaining specific embodiments and therefore should not be used as a limitation on the scope of the present invention. In addition, unless otherwise specified, the drawings are intended only to conceptually represent the composition or structure of the described object and may be exaggerated, and the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale. In addition, in different drawings, the same reference numerals represent the same or substantially the same components.

[0025] Figure 1 A three-dimensional exploded schematic diagram of a power battery pack assembly including a battery module array and a corresponding thermal insulation assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown.

[0026] Figure 2 Schematically shows Figure 1 The arrangement of two adjacent single cells and the heat insulation element therebetween in the power battery pack assembly shown.

[0027] Figure 3 A method according to an embodiment of the present invention includes two Figure 1 A schematic three-dimensional assembly diagram of a power battery pack with power battery pack assemblies that are substantially identical to the power battery pack assemblies shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] Some embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Unless otherwise clearly defined herein, the scientific and technical terms used herein have the meanings commonly understood by those skilled in the art.

[0029] The top, bottom, front, back, etc. mentioned in this article are defined relative to the directions in the drawings, and they are relative concepts, and therefore can vary according to different positions and different practical positions. Therefore, these or other directional terms should not be understood as restrictive terms.

[0030] As used herein, "including", "having" and similar words mean that in addition to the items listed thereafter and their equivalents, other items may also be within the scope. The terms "or" and "alternatively" do not mean exclusive, but refer to the presence of at least one of the mentioned items, and include situations where a combination of the mentioned items may exist. The term "and / or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the mentioned items. References to "some embodiments" and the like herein indicate that a specific element (such as a feature, structure and / or characteristic) related to the present invention is included in at least one embodiment described in this specification, and may or may not appear in other embodiments. In addition, it should be understood that the inventive elements may be combined in any appropriate manner.

[0031] One aspect of the present invention relates to a power battery pack for a vehicle, which is provided with heat insulation elements between adjacent single cells and between adjacent battery modules, and each battery module is enclosed in an independent module compartment, so that each module compartment is connected to the exhaust channel only through a special exhaust port, and the exhaust channel is connected to the outside of the battery pack through a valve, so that the gas in the exhaust channel can be discharged to the outside of the battery pack under certain conditions. Such a design can effectively prevent heat diffusion between cells and modules.

[0032] like Figure 1 As shown, an exemplary power battery pack assembly 1 includes a battery module array 10 formed by a plurality of battery modules 100 arranged in a certain direction and a heat insulation assembly 11 for preventing heat diffusion. Each battery module 100 includes a plurality of single cells 1001. In the illustrated embodiment, the battery module array 10 is a single-row array formed by a plurality of battery modules 100 arranged in a row, and the arrangement direction of the plurality of battery modules 100 (module arrangement direction) is substantially perpendicular to the arrangement direction of the plurality of single cells 1001 in each battery module 100. As shown in Figure 2 As more clearly shown in FIG. 1 , a heat insulation element (cell heat insulation element) 111 is provided between each two adjacent single battery cells 1001. In addition, in the module arrangement direction, heat insulation elements (module heat insulation elements) 112 are provided on both sides of each battery module 100, and a top component 115 and a bottom component (not shown) are provided on the top and bottom of the plurality of battery modules 100, respectively. In a direction perpendicular to the module arrangement direction, side beams 116 and 117 are provided on opposite sides of the battery module array 10, respectively, and the side beams 116 and 117 extend approximately parallel to the module arrangement direction.

[0033] The module insulation element 112, the top component 115, the bottom component and the side beams 116, 117 are arranged to enclose each battery module 100 in an independent module bin 120, so that each module bin 120 is independent of other module bins 120, avoiding direct spatial connection and / or direct gas circulation between the module bins 120, so as to reduce or avoid gas diffusion and / or heat diffusion between different battery modules 100.

[0034] One of the side beams 116 and 117 is provided with a plurality of exhaust ports corresponding to the plurality of module compartments 120, and a smoke exhaust passage is provided on the other side of the side beam opposite to the module compartment 120 (at Figure 1 (not shown), so that each module compartment can be connected to the exhaust channel through the multiple exhaust ports. The exhaust channel can be connected to the outside of the power battery pack through a valve, such as an explosion-proof valve (not shown), so that the gas in the exhaust channel can be discharged to the outside of the battery pack through the valve under the setting conditions of the valve. Figure 1 In the illustrated embodiment, the side beam 116 is provided with a plurality of exhaust ports 1160 respectively connecting a plurality of module compartments located on one side of the side beam 116 and a smoke exhaust channel located on the other side of the side beam 116. A backflow prevention element (not shown) is provided in each exhaust port 1160. The provision of the backflow prevention element allows the high-temperature gas in the module compartment that has thermal runaway to be discharged to the smoke exhaust channel, and can effectively prevent the gas in the smoke exhaust channel from flowing back to other module compartments that have not thermal runaway. In some embodiments, the backflow prevention element is a high-temperature resistant porous material that can withstand high temperatures above 600°C, such as fireproof cotton. In some embodiments, each exhaust port 1160 is filled with fireproof cotton to achieve the above function.

[0035] There is no limit to the number of heat-insulating elements 112 disposed between adjacent battery modules 100, and a suitable number can be selected according to specific needs. For example, the same number (one or more) of heat-insulating elements 112 can be disposed between every two adjacent battery modules 100, or different numbers of heat-insulating elements 112 can be disposed between adjacent battery modules 100 at different positions. In the illustrated embodiment, one heat-insulating element 112 is disposed between two pairs of adjacent battery modules 100 respectively close to both ends in the module arrangement direction, and two spaced-apart heat-insulating elements 112 are disposed between other pairs of adjacent battery modules 100 (adjacent battery module pairs at the middle position in the module arrangement direction).

[0036] The top component 115 can be made of a heat-insulating fireproof material, and it can include a plurality of top covers corresponding to a plurality of battery modules 100, or it can be a common top cover shared by a plurality of battery modules 100. In the illustrated embodiment, the top component 115 includes a plurality of heat-insulating top covers that cover the tops of a plurality of battery modules 100, respectively, and the material of the heat-insulating top covers can be the same as or different from that of the module heat-insulating element 112. The use of a heat-insulating top cover made of a heat-insulating fireproof material can effectively prevent the high-temperature mixture and flames ejected from the battery cells from penetrating the top cover when a thermal runaway occurs in a battery cell in a module compartment, allowing oxygen to enter the diffusion process, and at the same time prevent the high-temperature gas from spreading from above to other modules. The bottom component can be any substrate or base suitable for mounting the battery module array 10 and the heat-insulating component 11 thereon. The bottom component can be directly the bottom of the battery pack shell body, or it can be a battery pack mounting substrate mounted on the bottom.

[0037] The cell insulation element 111 can be any suitable element with low thermal conductivity and high resilience, which can absorb the thermal expansion and contraction of the cell, and can effectively delay or block the heat of the single cell that has thermal runaway from propagating to the adjacent cell. In some embodiments, the cell insulation element 111 includes a component formed of a material with low thermal conductivity, high resilience, flame retardancy and aging resistance, such as an aerogel sheet, a mouth-shaped frame with a built-in insulation material (a gasket formed by an isolation material is installed in a mouth-shaped frame such as plastic), a ceramic composite insulation pad, etc. The module insulation element 112 can be any suitable element with insulation and fire prevention functions, for example, it can include an insulation material with good insulation performance and high strength, which can withstand the impact of high-temperature gas. In some embodiments, the module insulation element 112 includes at least one of a mica sheet and a ceramic composite insulation pad. The side beams 116 and 117 may be heat insulating elements like the module heat insulating element 112 , or may be made of heat conductive materials. For example, in some embodiments, the side beams 116 and / or 117 may be made of aluminum alloy materials.

[0038] One or more of the battery pack assemblies 1 can be arranged in a battery pack housing in a suitable manner to form a power battery pack together with other matching components.

[0039] In some embodiments, since the four faces (or three faces) of each battery module, front, back, left, and right, are all covered with heat-insulating and fire-proof materials, and the module compartments formed by them can separate the battery modules from each other in space, so as to avoid the influence of high-temperature ejecta and the flames generated by the combustion of ejecta on the surrounding modules. The module compartment is connected to the smoke exhaust channel through the exhaust port. Once the battery cell is thermally runaway, the high-temperature gas is confined inside the module compartment, and then enters the smoke exhaust channel through the exhaust port, and then is discharged to the outside of the battery pack through the explosion-proof valve on the box. In some embodiments, in order to enable the explosion-proof valve to reach the set pressure relief condition as soon as possible, the smoke exhaust channel can be filled with a filling material that can reduce the effective space in the smoke exhaust channel as needed. The filling material can be a foaming material. By reducing the effective space in the channel through the filling material, the high-temperature gas in the smoke exhaust channel can be caused to erupt and be discharged to the outside of the battery pack as soon as possible.

[0040] Figure 3 An exemplary power battery pack 2 according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown, which may include Figure 1 The battery pack assembly 1 shown is a combination of at least one (for example, two or more) battery pack assemblies that are the same or similar to the battery pack assembly 1. Figure 3 As shown, the power battery pack 2 includes an outer shell 21, and the shell 21 defines a battery module space 211 and a control element space 212 therein. Figure 1 The battery pack assembly 22 and the battery pack assembly 23, which are substantially the same as the battery pack assembly 1, are arranged side by side in the battery module space 211 in a direction perpendicular to the module arrangement direction. That is, the battery modules of the two (in Figure 3 The battery modules (which are hidden and invisible by their top covers) are arranged in two rows in the battery module space 211, and corresponding insulation components are provided for each row of battery modules in a manner similar to that described above for the battery pack assembly 1.

[0041] An exhaust port (not visible in the figure) is provided on the side beam 224 of the battery pack assembly 22 adjacent to the side wall 213 of the box body 21, and a smoke exhaust channel 24 is formed between the side beam 224 and the side wall 213. An exhaust port 2340 is provided on the side beam 234 of the battery pack assembly 23 adjacent to the side wall 214 of the box body 21, and a smoke exhaust channel 25 is formed between the side beam 234 and the side wall 214. The side beams 224 and 234 can extend to form a relatively sealed joint with the end walls 215 and 216 of the box body 21, respectively, so as to separate the smoke exhaust channels 24 and 25 from other parts in the battery module space 211 and the control element space 212. At least one of the adjacent side beams 225 and 235 of the battery pack assembly 22 and the battery pack assembly 23 may be a heat insulating element (for example, it may have the same structure as the module heat insulating element 112 described above), thereby providing heat insulation between the battery pack assembly 22 and the battery pack assembly 23. The side beams 225 and 235 may be spaced apart from each other to form a certain space interval between them. The other configurations of the battery pack assemblies 22 and 23 may be consistent with those of the battery pack assembly 1 described above, and will not be described in detail here.

[0042] Various control elements, high voltage devices, etc. for controlling the battery pack assembly may be installed in the control element space 212. In the illustrated embodiment, the control element space 212 is located at one end of the battery pack assembly 22 or 23 along the module arrangement direction of the battery pack assembly 22 or 23.

[0043] In addition, cooling structures, such as water cooling circulation channels, can be integrated into the bottom components of the battery pack (e.g., the battery pack mounting substrate). In this way, water circulation can be started before thermal runaway occurs, and the local overheating area can be cooled as quickly as possible to avoid thermal runaway. Real-time monitoring can be performed through the thermal runaway sensor installed on the side beam. When the sensor detects that thermal runaway may occur, the battery management system (BMS) uploads information to the vehicle control software and turns on the battery water pump to maximum power to quickly transfer the heat near the failed battery cell to other locations to achieve effective cooling.

[0044] The purpose of providing the above specific embodiments is to make the understanding of the disclosure of the present invention more thorough and comprehensive, but the present invention is not limited to these specific embodiments. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications, equivalent substitutions and changes, etc., may also be made to the present invention, as long as these changes do not violate the spirit of the present invention, they should all be within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A power battery pack, characterized in that: It includes at least one battery pack assembly, each of which includes: A battery module array, comprising a plurality of battery modules arranged along a module arrangement direction, each of the battery modules comprising a plurality of battery cells, battery cell insulation elements being arranged between adjacent battery cells in the plurality of battery cells, and module insulation elements being arranged on both sides of each of the battery modules in the module arrangement direction; a top assembly and a bottom assembly located at the top and bottom of the plurality of battery modules, respectively; Side beams are respectively arranged on both sides of the battery module array in a direction perpendicular to the module arrangement direction and extend substantially parallel to the module arrangement direction; and A smoke exhaust channel is connected to the outside of the power battery pack through a valve, and the valve can discharge the gas in the smoke exhaust channel to the outside under set conditions, The module heat insulation element, the top assembly, the bottom assembly and the side beams are arranged to enclose each of the battery modules in a module compartment, and at least one of the side beams is provided with an exhaust port respectively connecting the smoke exhaust channel and each of the module compartments; The power battery pack further includes a box body, one or more battery pack components are arranged in the box body, and the valve is arranged on the box body.

2. The power battery pack according to claim 1, characterized in that: An anti-backflow element is provided in the exhaust port. The setting of the anti-backflow element allows the gas in the module compartment where thermal runaway occurs to be discharged to the smoke exhaust channel, and prevents the gas in the smoke exhaust channel from flowing back to the module compartment where thermal runaway does not occur.

3. The power battery pack according to claim 2, characterized in that: The backflow prevention element includes fireproof cotton.

4. The power battery pack according to claim 1, characterized in that: The battery core heat insulation element comprises at least one of an aerogel sheet, a mouth-shaped frame with a heat insulation material therein, and a ceramic composite material heat insulation pad.

5. The power battery pack according to claim 1, characterized in that: The module thermal insulation element includes at least one of a mica sheet and a ceramic composite thermal insulation pad.

6. The power battery pack according to claim 1, characterized in that: The top assembly includes a plurality of top heat insulating elements respectively corresponding to the plurality of battery modules.

7. The power battery pack according to claim 1, characterized in that: The top assembly includes a common top insulation element covering the plurality of battery modules.

8. The power battery pack according to claim 1, characterized in that: The arrangement direction of the battery cells in each battery module is substantially perpendicular to the arrangement direction of the modules.

9. The power battery pack according to claim 1, characterized in that: The smoke exhaust channel is arranged on a side of the side beam having the exhaust port opposite to the battery module.

10. The power battery pack according to claim 1, characterized in that: The smoke exhaust channel is filled with a filling material which can reduce the effective space in the smoke exhaust channel as required.

11. The power battery pack according to claim 10, characterized in that: The filling material includes a foaming material.

12. The power battery pack according to claim 1, characterized in that: The at least one battery pack assembly includes two battery pack assemblies arranged side by side in the box in a direction perpendicular to the module arrangement direction, and the smoke exhaust channel of each battery pack assembly is arranged between the side wall of the box and the side beam having the exhaust port.

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