Thermal management module and thermal management assembly

Abstract

The invention belongs to the technical field of thermal management, and discloses a thermal management module and a thermal management assembly. The heat management module comprises a shell, a refrigerant module and a leakage processing module, wherein the shell is provided with a closed accommodating cavity; refrigerant circulates in the refrigerant module, and the refrigerant module is arranged in the containing cavity so that the leaked refrigerant can be stored in the containing cavity. At least part of the leakage processing module is arranged in the containing cavity, and the leakage processing module is used for processing leaked refrigerants in the containing cavity. The heat management module can collect leaked refrigerants, and the safety of the heat management module is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of thermal management technology, and in particular to a thermal management module and a thermal management assembly. Background Art

[0002] As the demand for thermal management in automobiles and other fields gradually increases, the application field of thermal management structures has become increasingly extensive. However, for the thermal management module in the heat pipe structure, there is a problem of refrigerant leakage. For example, the leakage of R290 refrigerant is about 5g, the leakage of 134a refrigerant is about 20g, and the leakage of 1234yf refrigerant is about 20g. Therefore, how to suppress the leakage of thermal management modules is one of the problems that the industry has been solving. However, the existing means of suppressing leakage can only reduce the leakage of refrigerant, and cannot make the parts completely leak-free after assembly. Refrigerants have the characteristics of being slightly toxic, flammable, and explosive. Refrigerant leakage usually fills the surrounding environment. For example, refrigerant leakage in a car may enter the passenger compartment, which will bring safety hazards to users.

[0003] Therefore, there is an urgent need for a thermal management module and a thermal management assembly to solve the above technical problems. Summary of the invention

[0004] An object of the present invention is to provide a thermal management module that can collect and process leaked refrigerant, thereby improving the safety of the thermal management module.

[0005] To achieve this object, the present invention adopts the following technical solutions:

[0006] Thermal management module, including:

[0007] A housing having a sealed accommodating cavity;

[0008] A refrigerant module, in which refrigerant circulates, and the refrigerant module is arranged in the accommodating chamber so that the leaked refrigerant is stored in the accommodating chamber;

[0009] A leakage processing module, at least a part of which is disposed in the accommodating chamber, and the leakage processing module is used to process the leaked refrigerant in the accommodating chamber.

[0010] Optionally, the leakage processing module comprises a leakage processing box body, which is disposed in the accommodating cavity, and a filter element is disposed in the leakage processing box body to absorb the leaked refrigerant.

[0011] Optionally, the filter element is an activated carbon filter element.

[0012] Optionally, the shell is provided with an opening, the leakage processing box body can be pulled out and passed through the opening and extended into the accommodating cavity, and the leakage processing box body can block the opening.

[0013] Optionally, the leakage processing module includes:

[0014] An air inlet, the air inlet being opened on the housing;

[0015] An exhaust pipe, the exhaust pipe is arranged on the housing and is arranged opposite to the air inlet to form a flow channel, and the outlet of the exhaust pipe is connected to the external environment;

[0016] The fan is arranged in the accommodating chamber so that air enters from the air inlet and is discharged to the external environment from the exhaust pipe.

[0017] Optionally, the air inlet is an air intake grille.

[0018] Optionally, the leakage processing module further includes a refrigerant concentration sensor, which is disposed in the accommodating chamber and is used to detect the concentration of the leaked refrigerant in the accommodating chamber.

[0019] Optionally, the leakage processing module further includes a controller, the refrigerant concentration sensor and the fan are electrically connected to the controller, and the controller is used to receive detection information from the refrigerant concentration sensor and control the opening and closing of the fan.

[0020] Optionally, the leakage processing module includes a flame retardant gas, and the flame retardant gas is arranged in the accommodating chamber to prevent the leaked refrigerant in the accommodating chamber from burning and exploding.

[0021] Another object of the present invention is to provide a thermal management assembly, which includes the thermal management module described in any of the above solutions.

[0022] Beneficial effects of the present invention:

[0023] The present invention provides a thermal management module and a thermal management assembly. A shell is provided to place a refrigerant module in a sealed accommodating chamber, so that even if the refrigerant leaks, it will be temporarily stored in the accommodating chamber. Then, the leaked refrigerant is processed by a leakage processing module to avoid the leakage of a large amount of residual refrigerant to cause harm. In this way, the leaked refrigerant can be processed, and the refrigerant leakage in an airless environment to avoid harm to the user or cause combustion, explosion and other problems, thereby improving the safety of the thermal management module. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] Figure 1 is an axonometric diagram of a thermal management module provided in Embodiment 1 of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 2 is an axonometric diagram of a thermal management module provided in Embodiment 1 of the present invention when a leakage processing box is pulled out;

[0026] Figure 3 is an axonometric diagram of a thermal management module provided in Embodiment 2 of the present invention from one perspective;

[0027] Figure 4 is an axonometric diagram of the thermal management module provided in the second embodiment of the present invention from another perspective;

[0028] Figure 5 This is an axonometric diagram of the thermal management module provided in the second embodiment of the present invention with part of the outer shell hidden.

[0029] In the figure:

[0030] 10. housing; 11. first housing; 12. second housing;

[0031] 20. Refrigerant module; 21. First antifreeze liquid inlet pipe; 22. First antifreeze liquid outlet pipe; 23. Second antifreeze liquid inlet pipe; 24. Second antifreeze liquid outlet pipe; 25. Wiring harness; 26. Mounting part;

[0032] 30. Leakage treatment module; 31. Leakage treatment box; 32. Filter element; 33. Air inlet; 34. Exhaust duct; 35. Fan; 36. Refrigerant concentration sensor. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0033] The present invention will be further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments. It is to be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the present invention, rather than to limit the present invention. It should also be noted that, for ease of description, only parts related to the present invention, rather than all structures, are shown in the accompanying drawings.

[0034] In the description of the present invention, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "connected", "connected", and "fixed" should be understood in a broad sense, for example, it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; it can be directly connected or indirectly connected through an intermediate medium, it can be the internal connection of two elements or the interaction relationship between two elements. For ordinary technicians in this field, the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0035] In the present invention, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, a first feature being "above" or "below" a second feature may include that the first and second features are in direct contact, or may include that the first and second features are not in direct contact but are in contact through another feature between them. Moreover, a first feature being "above", "above" and "above" a second feature includes that the first feature is directly above and obliquely above the second feature, or simply indicates that the first feature is higher in level than the second feature. A first feature being "below", "below" and "below" a second feature includes that the first feature is directly below and obliquely below the second feature, or simply indicates that the first feature is lower in level than the second feature.

[0036] In the description of this embodiment, the terms "upper", "lower", "left", "right", etc., and the orientation or position relationship are based on the orientation or position relationship shown in the drawings, and are only for the convenience of description and simplified operation, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operate in a specific orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as limiting the present invention. In addition, the terms "first" and "second" are only used to distinguish in the description and have no special meaning.

[0037] Refer to the following Figures 1 to 5 , Example 1, Example 2 and Example 3 introduce the thermal management module and thermal management assembly provided by the present invention.

[0038] It should be noted that the thermal management module and thermal management assembly provided by the present invention are applicable to the leakage treatment of all refrigerants, which will not be described in detail below.

[0039] Embodiment 1

[0040] This embodiment provides a thermal management module for circulating a refrigerant in a thermal management assembly to achieve cooling and / or heating.

[0041] Please refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2 Specifically, the thermal management module includes a shell 10, a refrigerant module 20 and a leakage processing module 30. The shell 10 has a sealed accommodating cavity; refrigerant circulates in the refrigerant module 20, and the refrigerant module 20 is arranged in the accommodating cavity so that the leaked refrigerant is stored in the accommodating cavity; at least part of the leakage processing module 30 is arranged in the accommodating cavity, and the leakage processing module 30 is used to process the leaked refrigerant in the accommodating cavity.

[0042] The thermal management module in this embodiment places the refrigerant module 20 in a sealed accommodating chamber by providing a shell 10, so that even if there is a refrigerant leak, it will be temporarily stored in the accommodating chamber, and then the leaked refrigerant will be processed by the leakage processing module 30 to avoid the leakage of the refrigerant remaining in a large amount to cause harm, thereby realizing the processing of the leaked refrigerant, avoiding the leakage of the refrigerant in an environment with poor air circulation to cause harm to the user or cause combustion, explosion and other problems, thereby improving the safety of the thermal management module.

[0043] Please continue to refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2 In this embodiment, the leakage processing module 30 includes a leakage processing box body 31, which is arranged in the accommodating cavity. A filter element 32 is arranged in the leakage processing box body 31 to absorb the leaked refrigerant. The filter element 32 absorbs the leaked refrigerant to prevent the refrigerant from leaking into an environment with relatively low air permeability, thereby improving the safety of the thermal management module.

[0044] Optionally, the filter element 32 is an activated carbon filter element, which has adsorption properties for refrigerant, thereby evolving the refrigerant, and has a simple structure and strong adsorption capacity. By using the activated carbon filter element, the leaked refrigerant can be effectively adsorbed and purified.

[0045] Optionally, the shell 10 is provided with an opening, and the leakage processing box body 31 can be pulled out and passed through the opening and extended into the accommodating cavity, and the leakage processing box body 31 can seal the opening. Such a setting can facilitate the replacement of the filter element 32 to ensure the adsorption capacity of the leakage processing module 30 for the leaked refrigerant.

[0046] It is understandable that the time for replacing the filter element 32 can be set according to actual needs. Since the refrigerant leakage problem of the thermal management module may be caused by long-term use and the leakage amount is small, the filter element 32 can usually be replaced once a year. Of course, a concentration detection structure can also be set to determine whether the filter element 32 is invalid, so as to replace the filter element 32 in time, which is not specifically limited here.

[0047] Please continue to refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2 In this embodiment, the housing 10 includes a first shell 11 and a second shell 12 , and the first shell 11 and the second shell 12 are detachably connected to load and cover the refrigerant module 20 .

[0048] Specifically, the shape of the housing 10 is designed to fit the refrigerant module 20 to avoid the housing 10 occupying too much space, resulting in reduced volume utilization.

[0049] Optionally, the first shell 11 and the second shell 12 may be connected by a detachable connection method such as threaded connection, snap connection, etc., which is not specifically limited here.

[0050] Optionally, the housing 10 is made of plastic material, which is lighter and has low thermal conductivity.

[0051] In this embodiment, the refrigerant module 20 includes a compressor, an expansion valve, a liquid storage and drying structure, a plurality of heat exchangers and connecting pipes, etc., so as to realize the cyclic cooling and / or heating of the refrigerant module 20.

[0052] Furthermore, the refrigerant module 20 is provided with a plurality of external connection structures, and the external connection structures are all sealed and penetrated through the shell 10, so that the accommodating cavity in the shell 10 is more in a sealed state.

[0053] Specifically, the plurality of external connection structures are configured as a first antifreeze liquid inlet pipe 21 , a first antifreeze liquid outlet pipe 22 , a second antifreeze liquid inlet pipe 23 , a second antifreeze liquid outlet pipe 24 , a wiring harness 25 and a mounting portion 26 , all of which need to be sealed and penetrated through the housing 10 .

[0054] Optionally, the sealing structure between the external connection structure and the housing 10 may be a sealing structure such as a sealing rubber plug to form a closed accommodating cavity.

[0055] This embodiment also provides a thermal management assembly, which includes the thermal management module described in any of the above solutions. The thermal management assembly is an assembly structure for realizing external heating and cooling, and has all the beneficial effects of the above thermal management modules, which will not be described in detail here.

[0056] Embodiment 2

[0057] This embodiment provides a thermal management module and a thermal management assembly. The difference between this embodiment and the first embodiment lies in the difference in the structure of the leakage processing module 30 and the leakage processing method.

[0058] Please refer to Figures 3 to 5 Specifically, the leakage processing module 30 includes an air inlet 33, an exhaust pipe 34 and a fan 35. The air inlet 33 is opened in the housing 10; the exhaust pipe 34 is arranged in the housing 10 and is arranged opposite to the air inlet 33 to form a flow channel, and the outlet of the exhaust pipe 34 is connected to the external environment; the fan 35 is arranged in the accommodating chamber to allow air to enter from the air inlet 33 and be discharged from the exhaust pipe 34 to the external environment. When in use, the fan 35 can be turned on to generate negative pressure in the accommodating chamber, thereby driving air to enter from the air inlet 33 to dilute the concentration of the refrigerant leaking in the accommodating chamber, and then discharged to the external environment through the exhaust pipe 34, so as to discharge the refrigerant and avoid the safety hazards caused by it.

[0059] It is understood that the above-mentioned external environment refers to an environment with good external air permeability, for example, the external environment of the thermal management assembly in a car is the outside of the car; thereby achieving dilution of the refrigerant concentration, thereby making it not a safety risk. Of course, it can also be discharged to a processing device to reprocess the refrigerant before discharge or reuse, which is not specifically limited here.

[0060] Optionally, the air inlet 33 is an air inlet grille, which can allow air to enter and reduce the outflow of gas in the accommodating chamber, so that air will enter from the air inlet grille only after the fan 35 is turned on and negative pressure is formed inside the accommodating chamber.

[0061] Furthermore, the leakage processing module 30 also includes a refrigerant concentration sensor 36, which is disposed in the accommodating chamber and is used to detect the concentration of the leaked refrigerant in the accommodating chamber. When the detected concentration reaches the designed concentration limit, the fan 35 is turned on to expel the refrigerant, thereby avoiding the waste of resources caused by the long-term operation of the fan 35.

[0062] Furthermore, the leakage processing module 30 also includes a controller, and the refrigerant concentration sensor 36 and the fan 35 are both electrically connected to the controller, and the controller is used to receive the detection information of the refrigerant concentration sensor 36 and control the opening and closing of the fan 35. That is, the controller can determine whether the fan 35 is turned on according to the detection information of the refrigerant concentration sensor 36 to save resources.

[0063] Optionally, the controller may use the controller that is already in use by the thermal management module itself, without adding redundant structures, thereby improving resource utilization of the thermal management module.

[0064] Embodiment 3

[0065] This embodiment provides a thermal management module and a thermal management assembly. The difference between this embodiment and the first and second embodiments is that the structure of the leakage processing module 30 and the leakage processing method are different.

[0066] Specifically, the leakage processing module 30 includes a flame retardant gas, which is arranged in the accommodating chamber to prevent the refrigerant leaking in the accommodating chamber from burning and exploding. By arranging the flame retardant gas in the accommodating chamber, the possibility of combustion and explosion of the refrigerant after leaking into the accommodating chamber is reduced.

[0067] Specifically, in the present embodiment, an inert gas is selected as the flame-retardant gas, and the inert gas is filled in the containing cavity, so that the oxygen content in the containing cavity is reduced, thereby preventing the combustion and explosion of the leaked refrigerant gas. There is no need to set up other additional structures, which reduces the number of components and avoids a substantial increase in the weight of the thermal management module.

[0068] It should be noted that the inert gas may be nitrogen, carbon dioxide, etc., and is not specifically limited here.

[0069] It is understandable that, in order to ensure the concentration of the flame retardant gas in the accommodating chamber, the flame retardant gas can be refilled into the accommodating chamber after a certain period of time, and the specific time can be set according to actual needs. For example, the flame retardant gas can usually be replenished in a cycle of half a year or a year. Of course, a concentration detection structure can also be set to determine the concentration of the flame retardant gas, so as to replenish the flame retardant gas in a timely manner, which is not specifically limited here.

[0070] Obviously, the above embodiments of the present invention are merely examples for clearly illustrating the present invention, and are not intended to limit the embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, various obvious changes, readjustments and substitutions can be made without departing from the protection scope of the present invention. It is not necessary and impossible to list all the embodiments here. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions and improvements made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included in the protection scope of the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. Thermal management module, characterized in that: include: A housing (10), wherein the housing (10) has a sealed accommodating cavity; A refrigerant module (20), wherein a refrigerant circulates in the refrigerant module (20), and the refrigerant module (20) is arranged in the accommodating chamber so that the leaked refrigerant is stored in the accommodating chamber; A leakage processing module (30), at least a portion of which is disposed in the accommodating chamber, and the leakage processing module (30) is used to process the leaked refrigerant in the accommodating chamber.

2. The thermal management module according to claim 1, characterized in that: The leakage processing module (30) comprises a leakage processing box body (31), wherein the leakage processing box body (31) is arranged in the accommodating cavity, and a filter element (32) is arranged in the leakage processing box body (31) to absorb the leaked refrigerant.

3. The thermal management module according to claim 2, characterized in that: The filter element (32) is an activated carbon filter element.

4. The thermal management module according to claim 2, characterized in that: The housing (10) is provided with an opening, and the leakage processing box body (31) can be pulled out and passed through the opening and extended into the accommodating cavity, and the leakage processing box body (31) can block the opening.

5. The thermal management module according to claim 1, characterized in that: The leakage processing module (30) comprises: An air inlet (33), the air inlet (33) being opened in the housing (10); an exhaust pipe (34), the exhaust pipe (34) being arranged on the housing (10) and being arranged opposite to the air inlet (33) to form a flow channel, and an outlet of the exhaust pipe (34) being connected to the external environment; A fan (35) is arranged in the accommodating cavity so that air enters from the air inlet (33) and is discharged from the exhaust pipe (34) to the external environment.

6. The thermal management module according to claim 5, characterized in that: The air inlet (33) is an air inlet grille.

7. The thermal management module according to claim 5, characterized in that: The leakage processing module (30) further comprises a refrigerant concentration sensor (36), wherein the refrigerant concentration sensor (36) is arranged in the accommodating chamber, and the refrigerant concentration sensor (36) is used to detect the concentration of the leaked refrigerant in the accommodating chamber.

8. The thermal management module according to claim 7, characterized in that: The leakage processing module (30) also includes a controller, the refrigerant concentration sensor (36) and the fan (35) are both electrically connected to the controller, and the controller is used to receive detection information from the refrigerant concentration sensor (36) and control the opening and closing of the fan (35).

9. The thermal management module according to claim 1, characterized in that: The leakage processing module (30) comprises a flame retardant gas, which is arranged in the accommodating chamber to prevent the leaked refrigerant in the accommodating chamber from burning and exploding.

10. A thermal management assembly, characterized in that: Comprising a thermal management module as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9.

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