Cold plate and cooling system

By designing a multi-layer liquid-cooled and direct-cooled runner cold plate in the battery cooling system, direct heat exchange between refrigerant and coolant is achieved, the problems of large temperature difference between the battery cell and high cost of plate heat exchangers are solved, and the battery cooling efficiency is improved and security.

CN222338359UActive Publication Date: 2025-01-10ENVISION RUITAI DYNAMICS TECH (SHANGHAI) CO LTD +1
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Patent Information

Application Number
CN202420401658.2
Authority / Receiving Office
CN · China
Patent Type
Utility models(China)
Current Assignee / Owner
Filing Date
2024-03-01
Publication Date
2025-01-10
Estimated Expiration
2034-03-01

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

In the existing battery cooling system, low-temperature refrigerant does not directly participate in the battery heat exchange process, resulting in a large temperature difference in the battery cell, affecting the service life of the battery cell, and the plate heat exchanger is costly and complex in control.

Method used

A cold plate is designed, including a multi-layer liquid-cooled runner and a direct-cooled runner. The refrigerant and coolant directly exchange heat, avoiding the two-stage heat exchange mode, and the refrigerant flows in the liquid-cooled plate, reducing pipeline connections.

Benefits of technology

It reduces the cost of the battery pack cooling system, improves the heat exchange efficiency of the battery cell and coolant, avoids temperature difference and control complexity issues, and enhances safety and heat exchange efficiency.

✦ Generated by Eureka AI based on patent content.

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Abstract

The utility model proposes a cold plate and a cooling system, the cold plate comprises a cold plate body, the cold plate body is internally provided with at least two layers of liquid cooling flow channels and at least one layer of direct cooling flow channel, the liquid cooling flow channels and the direct cooling flow channel are laminated along the thickness direction of the cold plate body, the direct cooling flow channel is located between the two layers of liquid cooling flow channels, and cooling liquid circulates in the liquid cooling flow channels. And a refrigerant circulates in the direct cooling flow channel. Liquid cooling and direct cooling are integrally designed, the direct cooling is located between the liquid coolers on the two sides, the situation that due to the fact that the temperature of refrigerants is low, nearby air is condensed to form water drops can be avoided, potential safety hazards are avoided, the safety is improved, heat dissipation of the direct cooling plate to the environment can be weakened in the high-temperature environment, and the heat exchange efficiency is further improved.
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Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to the technical field of cooling systems, in particular to a cold plate and a cooling system. Background Art

[0002] The temperature of existing batteries during the charging and discharging process is getting higher and higher, and the heating rate is getting faster and faster. If the battery works in a high temperature environment for a long time, it will lead to the intensification of the side reactions inside the battery, which will not only affect the service life of the battery cell, but also increase the probability of thermal runaway of the battery. The decay of battery service life and the risk of thermal runaway greatly affect the user experience of electric vehicles. Therefore, the battery packs equipped with new energy vehicles are generally designed with a cooling system to remove the heat accumulated during the use of the battery cell to ensure that the battery operates within the appropriate temperature range.

[0003] The existing battery pack cooling system circuit generally includes components such as a water pump, a liquid cooling plate, a plate heat exchanger, and a liquid storage pot. When the cooling system is working, the high-temperature coolant flows out of the outlet of the liquid cooling plate and enters the plate heat exchanger. After the high-temperature coolant exchanges heat with the low-temperature refrigerant, it flows out of the plate heat exchanger and enters the inlet of the liquid cooling plate. It has certain defects. The low-temperature refrigerant does not directly participate in the heat exchange process of the battery, so it cannot directly take away the heat when the battery is working. Instead, it is necessary to exchange heat with the coolant after the heat exchange between the coolant and the battery is completed, and then indirectly take away the heat through the refrigerant and the coolant. This two-stage heat exchange mode causes part of the heat generated by the battery to be stored in the coolant. The temperature of the coolant becomes higher and higher when it flows in the cold plate. Therefore, the battery cell at the outlet of the liquid cooling plate is usually much higher than the temperature at the inlet of the liquid cooling plate, resulting in a large temperature difference in the battery cell, which affects the service life of the battery cell. Utility Model Content

[0004] In view of the above shortcomings of the prior art, the purpose of the present invention is to provide a cold plate and a cooling system to improve the problem that the battery cells at the outlet of the liquid cooling plate in the existing cooling system are usually much hotter than the temperature at the inlet of the liquid cooling plate, resulting in a large temperature difference in the battery cells, affecting the service life of the battery cells and high costs.

[0005] In order to achieve the above-mentioned purpose and other related purposes, the utility model provides a cold plate, comprising:

[0006] A cold plate body, wherein at least two layers of liquid cooling channels and at least one layer of direct cooling channels are arranged in the cold plate body, the liquid cooling channels and the direct cooling channels are stacked along the thickness direction of the cold plate body, the direct cooling channels are located between the two layers of the liquid cooling channels, a coolant flows in the liquid cooling channels, and a refrigerant flows in the direct cooling channels.

[0007] In one embodiment of the present invention, the at least two layers of liquid cooling channels are connected in series or in parallel with each other.

[0008] In one embodiment of the present invention, it further comprises a liquid cooling inlet and a liquid cooling outlet. When the at least two layers of liquid cooling channels are connected in series, the first and last layers of the at least two layers of liquid cooling channels are connected to the liquid cooling inlet and the liquid cooling outlet respectively.

[0009] When the at least two layers of liquid-cooling channels are connected in parallel with each other, each layer of the liquid-cooling channels is respectively connected with the liquid-cooling inlet and the liquid-cooling outlet.

[0010] In one embodiment of the utility model, each layer of the liquid cooling channel includes a plurality of sub-channels connected in series, and the first and last two first sub-channels of the plurality of first sub-channels connected in series are respectively connected to the liquid cooling inlet and the liquid cooling outlet.

[0011] In one embodiment of the utility model, each layer of the liquid cooling channel includes a plurality of first sub-channels and a first confluence channel connected in parallel with each other, the plurality of parallel first sub-channels are connected to the first confluence channel, and the first confluence channel is connected to the liquid cooling inlet or the liquid cooling outlet.

[0012] In one embodiment of the utility model, the direct cooling channel includes a plurality of second sub-channels connected in series, and two second sub-channels located at the head and the tail of the plurality of second sub-channels connected in series are respectively connected to the direct cooling inlet and the direct cooling outlet.

[0013] In one embodiment of the utility model, the direct cooling channel includes a plurality of second sub-channels and second confluence channels connected in parallel, the plurality of parallel second sub-channels are connected to the second confluence channel, and the second confluence channel is connected to the direct cooling inlet or the direct cooling outlet.

[0014] In one embodiment of the present invention, the flow direction of the coolant in the liquid-cooling channel is the same as or opposite to the flow direction of the refrigerant in the direct-cooling channel.

[0015] In one embodiment of the present invention, the coolant is water-ethylene glycol coolant, and the refrigerant is Freon.

[0016] The utility model also proposes a cooling system, including a battery cooling system, an air-conditioning cooling system and a cold plate as described in any one of the above embodiments, wherein the direct cooling channel in the cold plate is connected to the air-conditioning cooling system, and the liquid cooling channel in the cold plate is connected to the battery cooling system.

[0017] The utility model proposes a cold plate and a cooling system. The cold plate adopts a multi-layer cold plate arranged with multi-layer liquid cooling channels and direct cooling channels, so that the refrigerant and the coolant can directly exchange heat without using a plate heat exchanger, which greatly reduces the cost of the battery pack liquid cooling system and combines the dual advantages of direct cooling and liquid cooling, but avoids the problems of uniform temperature difference of the direct cooling scheme, complex control of the thermal management system and low two-stage heat exchange efficiency of the liquid cooling scheme.

[0018] The utility model proposes a cold plate and a cooling system, in which the heat generated by the battery core is taken away by the coolant and then immediately exchanged to the refrigerant. The coolant only serves as a heat transfer medium and does not store heat. Therefore, the temperature of the coolant will remain relatively constant on the flow path, thereby enhancing the heat exchange between the battery core and the coolant; and the refrigerant flows directly in the liquid cooling plate, reducing pipeline connections, and further reducing costs and noise.

[0019] The utility model proposes a cold plate and a cooling system. By integrating liquid cooling and direct cooling into an integrated design, with the direct cooling located between the liquid cooling on both sides, it is possible to avoid the condensation of nearby air to form water droplets due to the low refrigerant temperature, thereby avoiding safety hazards and improving its safety. In a high temperature environment, it can weaken the heat dissipation of the direct cooling plate to the environment, further improving the heat exchange efficiency.

[0020] The utility model proposes a cold plate and a cooling system, which adopts a multi-layer cold plate design, wherein the direct cooling flow channel in the cold plate is connected to the air-conditioning cooling system, and the liquid cooling flow channel in the cold plate is connected to the battery cooling system, so that the battery cooling system and the air-conditioning cooling system are still two independent systems, and the two systems can be controlled separately, so the control strategy is relatively simple and has strong compatibility. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the utility model, the drawings required for describing the embodiments are briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the utility model. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative work.

[0022] Figure 1 This is a schematic structural diagram of a cold plate in one embodiment of the utility model.

[0023] Figure 2 The utility model is a schematic diagram of the cross-sectional structure of a cold plate in one embodiment.

[0024] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the first sub-flow channels being connected in series in one embodiment of the present invention.

[0025] Figure 4This is a schematic diagram showing that the first sub-flow channels are connected in parallel in one embodiment of the present invention.

[0026] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the second sub-flow channels being connected in series in one embodiment of the present invention.

[0027] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram showing that the second sub-flow channels are connected in parallel in one embodiment of the present invention.

[0028] Figure 7 It is a schematic diagram of the fluid inlet and outlet in one embodiment of the utility model.

[0029] Figure 8 The figure is a cross-sectional schematic diagram of a fluid inlet and outlet in one embodiment of the utility model.

[0030] Fig. 9 The figure is a structural block diagram of a cooling system in one embodiment of the present invention.

[0031] Description of labels:

[0032] 10. Cold plate; 11. Cold plate body; 101. Liquid cooling channel; 102. Direct cooling channel; 1011. First liquid cooling channel; 1012. Second liquid cooling channel; 1001. First sub-channel; 1002. First confluence channel; 1003. Second sub-channel; 1021. First part; 1022. Second part; 1004. Second confluence channel; 1041. First sub-confluence channel; 1042. Second sub-confluence channel; 111. Liquid cooling inlet; 112. Liquid cooling outlet; 113. Direct cooling inlet; 114. Direct cooling outlet; 115. Fluid inlet and outlet device; 100. Cooling system; 110. Expansion valve; 120. Condenser; 130. Compressor; 140. Water pump. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0033] The following is an explanation of the implementation of the present invention through specific examples, and those skilled in the art can easily understand other advantages and effects of the present invention from the contents disclosed in this specification. The present invention can also be implemented or applied through other different specific implementations, and the details in this specification can also be modified or changed in various ways based on different viewpoints and applications without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0034] It should be noted that the illustrations provided in this embodiment are only used to schematically illustrate the basic concept of the present invention. Therefore, the drawings only show components related to the present invention rather than being drawn according to the number, shape and size of components in actual implementation. In actual implementation, the type, quantity and proportion of each component may be changed arbitrarily, and the component layout may also be more complicated.

[0035] It should be noted that long-term operation of existing batteries in high-temperature environments will lead to intensified side reactions inside the batteries, which will not only affect the service life of the battery cells, but also increase the probability of thermal runaway of the batteries. The decay of battery service life and the risk of thermal runaway greatly affect the user experience of electric vehicles. Therefore, the battery packs equipped with new energy vehicles are generally designed with a cooling system to dissipate the heat accumulated during the use of the battery cells to ensure that the battery operates within an appropriate temperature range.

[0036] For the battery cooling system, the circuit generally includes components such as water pumps, liquid cooling plates, plate heat exchangers, and liquid storage pots. When the cooling system is working, under the action of the water pump, the high-temperature coolant flows out from the outlet of the liquid cooling plate and enters one side of the plate heat exchanger. The low-temperature refrigerant passes through the other side of the plate heat exchanger. After the high-temperature coolant exchanges heat with the low-temperature refrigerant, the temperature is reduced. After flowing out of the plate heat exchanger, it enters the inlet of the liquid cooling plate. The low-temperature coolant in the liquid cooling plate exchanges heat with the battery cell and becomes high-temperature coolant, which flows out of the outlet of the liquid cooling plate. The cycle repeats, thereby taking the heat from the battery pack when it is working. Among them, the plate heat exchanger provides a place for the low-temperature refrigerant and the high-temperature coolant to exchange heat, and it is also a bridge for the battery pack coolant system and the vehicle air conditioning cooling system to connect with each other.

[0037] The existing cooling system using plate heat exchangers has the problem that the low-temperature refrigerant does not directly participate in the heat exchange process of the battery, so it cannot directly take away the heat from the battery when it is working. Instead, it needs to exchange heat between the coolant and the coolant after the coolant and the battery have completed the heat exchange, and then indirectly take away the heat. This two-stage heat exchange mode causes the heat generated by the battery to be partially stored in the coolant. The temperature of the coolant becomes higher and higher as it flows in the cold plate. Therefore, the battery cell at the outlet of the liquid cold plate is usually much higher than the temperature at the inlet of the liquid cold plate, resulting in a large temperature difference in the battery cell, which affects the service life of the battery cell. In addition, the plate heat exchanger is relatively expensive, and a large number of pipes are required to connect the plate heat exchanger and the cold plate. In order to reduce the heat loss of the coolant in the external pipeline, the surface of these pipes needs to be coated with a large amount of insulation material, which further increases the cost.

[0038] To solve the above technical problems, please refer to Figures 1 to 8 As shown, the utility model proposes a cold plate 10, which includes a cold plate body 11, in which at least two layers of liquid cooling channels 101 and at least one layer of direct cooling channels 102 are arranged, and the liquid cooling channels 101 and the direct cooling channels 102 are stacked along the thickness direction of the cold plate body 11, and the direct cooling channels 102 are located between the two layers of liquid cooling channels 101, and the fluid in the liquid cooling channels 101 contains coolant, and the direct cooling channels 102 contain refrigerant, which combines the dual advantages of direct cooling and liquid cooling, but avoids the problems of uniform temperature difference of the direct cooling scheme, complex control of the thermal management system, and low two-stage heat exchange efficiency of the liquid cooling scheme.

[0039] See also Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, in this embodiment, according to different needs, at least two layers of liquid-cooling channels 101 can be connected in series or in parallel. When the liquid-cooling channels 101 are connected in series, the first and last layers of the at least two layers of liquid-cooling channels 101 are respectively connected to the liquid-cooling inlet 111 and the liquid-cooling outlet 112; when the liquid-cooling channels 101 are connected in parallel, each layer of the liquid-cooling channels 101 is respectively connected to the liquid-cooling inlet 111 and the liquid-cooling outlet 112.

[0040] The following embodiment is described by taking the cold plate body 11 having two layers of liquid cooling channels 101 and a layer of direct cooling channel 102 disposed between the two layers of liquid cooling channels 101 as an example. The two layers of liquid cooling channels are respectively a first liquid cooling channel 1011 and a second liquid cooling channel 1012 .

[0041] See also Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, in the present embodiment, the first liquid-cooling channel 1011 and the second liquid-cooling channel 1012 are connected in series. At this time, the first liquid-cooling channel 1011 and the second liquid-cooling channel 1012 are respectively connected to the liquid-cooling inlet 111 and the liquid-cooling outlet 112. For example, the first liquid-cooling channel 1011 and the second liquid-cooling channel 1012 are connected via an intermediate channel. The coolant is introduced into the first liquid-cooling channel 1011 through the liquid-cooling inlet 111, and the coolant flows into the second liquid-cooling channel 1012 through the intermediate channel, and flows out from the liquid-cooling outlet 112 through the second liquid-cooling channel 1012.

[0042] See also Figure 3 As shown, in this embodiment, each layer of liquid cooling channel 101 includes a plurality of first sub-channels 1001 connected in series, and the first and last two first sub-channels 1001 of the plurality of first sub-channels 1001 connected in series are respectively connected to the cooling liquid inlet 111 and the cooling liquid outlet 112. It should be noted that the first sub-channel 1001 refers to a section of the liquid cooling channel 101 along the cold plate body 11.

[0043] For example, see Figure 3 As shown, a first sub-channel 1001 located at the front of the first liquid-cooling channel 1011 and the second liquid-cooling channel 1012 is connected to the liquid-cooling inlet 111, and the first sub-channel 1001 located at the rear is connected to the liquid-cooling outlet 112 through the other of the first liquid-cooling channel 1011 and the second liquid-cooling channel 1012. Coolant is introduced into the first liquid-cooling channel 1011 through the liquid-cooling inlet 111, and the coolant passes through the multiple first sub-channels 1001 in the first liquid-cooling channel 1011 in sequence, and flows into the second liquid-cooling channel 1012 through the middle channel, and flows out from the liquid-cooling outlet 112 after passing through the multiple first sub-channels 1001 in the second liquid-cooling channel 1012.

[0044] Apart from Figure 3 For the embodiment shown in FIG. Figure 4 As shown, each layer of liquid-cooling channel 101 may also include a plurality of mutually parallel first sub-channels 1001 and first confluence channels 1002, wherein the plurality of parallel first sub-channels 1001 are connected to the first confluence channel 1002, and the first confluence channel 1002 is connected to the liquid-cooling inlet or the liquid-cooling outlet. In this embodiment, two first confluence channels 1002 are provided in each layer of liquid-cooling channel 101, and the two first confluence channels 1002 are arranged on both sides of the cold plate body 11 along the extension direction of the first sub-channel 1001, and the first confluence channel 1002 on one side is connected to the liquid-cooling inlet, and the first confluence channel 1002 on the other side is connected to the liquid-cooling outlet 112 through another layer of liquid-cooling channel.

[0045] For example, the first confluence channel 1002 on one side of the first liquid-cooling channel 1011 is connected to the liquid cooling inlet 111, and the first confluence channel 1002 on the other side is connected to the liquid cooling outlet 112 through the second liquid-cooling channel 1012. The cooling liquid is introduced into the first confluence channel 1002 on one side of the first liquid-cooling channel 1011 through the liquid cooling inlet 111. The cooling liquid flows into each first sub-channel 1001 through the first confluence channel 1002, and flows into the first confluence channel 1002 on the other side, and then flows into the first confluence channel 1002 on one side of the second liquid-cooling channel 1012 through the intermediate channel. After passing through multiple first sub-channels 1001 in the second liquid-cooling channel 1012, it flows into the first confluence channel 1002 on the other side from the liquid cooling outlet 112 and flows out from the liquid cooling outlet 112.

[0046] In some other embodiments, the multiple first sub-channels 1001 in each layer of the liquid-cooling channel 101 may also be connected in series, in parallel, or in a mixed arrangement of series and parallel.

[0047] It should be noted that the layers of liquid-cooling channels 101 can also be arranged in parallel. In this case, each layer of liquid-cooling channels 101 is respectively connected to a liquid-cooling inlet 111 and a liquid-cooling outlet 112. Of course, the difference from the series connection between the layers of liquid-cooling channels 101 described in the above embodiment is that when the liquid-cooling channel 101 includes multiple first sub-channels 1001 connected in series, the first sub-channel 1001 at the first position in each layer is connected to a liquid-cooling inlet 111, and the first sub-channel 1001 at the last position is directly connected to the liquid-cooling outlet 112 without passing through the liquid-cooling channels 101 of other layers to be connected to the liquid-cooling outlet 112; when the liquid-cooling channel 101 includes multiple first sub-channels 1001 connected in parallel, the first confluence channel 1002 at one side in each layer is connected to a liquid-cooling inlet 111, and the first confluence channel at the other side is directly connected to the liquid-cooling outlet 112 without passing through the liquid-cooling channels 101 of other layers to be connected to the liquid-cooling outlet 112. It should also be noted that, in the present embodiment, the liquid cooling inlet 111 and the liquid cooling outlet 112 are located on the same side of the cold plate body 11 . Of course, they can also be arranged on different sides of the cold plate body 11 , and can be arranged specifically according to needs.

[0048] See also Figure 5 As shown, in this embodiment, the direct cooling channel 102 includes a plurality of second sub-channels 1003 connected in series, and the two second sub-channels 1003 located at the head and the tail of the plurality of second sub-channels 1003 connected in series are respectively connected to the direct cooling inlet 113 and the direct cooling outlet 114. In this embodiment, the direct cooling inlet 113 and the direct cooling outlet 114 are on the same side, of course, they can also be set on different sides of the cold plate body 11, and can be specifically set as needed. It should be noted that the second sub-channel 1003 refers to a section of the direct cooling channel 102 along the cold plate body 11.

[0049] See also Figure 6 As shown, in this embodiment, the direct cooling channel 102 includes a second confluence channel 1004 and a plurality of second sub-channels 1003 connected in parallel, each second sub-channel 1003 is connected to the second confluence channel 1004, and the second confluence channel 1004 is connected to the direct cooling inlet 113 or the direct cooling outlet 114.

[0050] For example, see Figure 6 As shown, the multiple mutually parallel second sub-channels 1003 in the direct cooling channel 102 can be divided into a first part 1021 and a second part 1022 according to their spacing arrangement direction. The first part 1021 and the second part 1022 are arranged with the second confluence channel 1004 on both sides of the extension direction of the second sub-channel 1003, and the two sides provided with the second confluence channel 1004 are respectively defined as a first side and a second side, wherein the first side is close to the side where the fluid inlet and outlet device 115 is provided, and the second side is the side opposite to the first side.

[0051] See also Figure 6 As shown, the second confluence channels 1004 on the first side in the first part 1021 and the second part 1022 are independent of each other, the second confluence channel 1004 located on the first side in the first part 1021 is defined as a first sub-confluence channel 1041, and the second confluence channel 1004 located on the first side in the second part 1022 is defined as a second sub-confluence channel 1042, the first sub-confluence channel 1041 and the second sub-confluence channel 1042 are respectively connected with a direct cooling inlet 113 and a direct cooling outlet 114, the first part 1021 and the second part 1022 The second confluence channels 1004 on the second side are connected, the refrigerant enters the first sub-confluence channel 1041 from the direct cooling inlet 113, passes through multiple second sub-channels 1003 in the first part 1021, flows into the second confluence channel 1004 on the other side, and flows into the second sub-channel 1003 in the second part 1022, and finally flows out from the direct cooling outlet 114 through the second sub-confluence channel 1042. In this embodiment, the direct cooling inlet 113 and the direct cooling outlet 114 are on the same side. Of course, they can also be arranged on different sides of the cold plate body 11 , and can be arranged specifically according to needs.

[0052] Of course, in some other embodiments, when the direct cooling channel 102 includes a second confluence channel 1004 and a plurality of second sub-channels 1003 connected in parallel, the second confluence channel 1004 is provided on both sides of the cold plate body 11 along the extension direction of the plurality of second sub-channels 1003 in the direct cooling channel 102, and the two ends of the plurality of second sub-channels 1003 are respectively connected to the second confluence channels 1004 on both sides thereof, and the second confluence channels 1004 located on both sides are respectively connected to the direct cooling inlet 113 and the direct cooling outlet 114.

[0053] See also Figure 1 and Figure 7 As shown, in the present embodiment, the liquid cooling inlet 111, the liquid cooling outlet 112, the direct cooling inlet 113 and the direct cooling outlet 114 are arranged on the same side of the cold plate body 11. For example, the liquid cooling inlet 111, the liquid cooling outlet 112, the direct cooling inlet 113 and the direct cooling outlet 114 can be integrated on a fluid inlet and outlet device 115. For example, the liquid cooling inlet 111 and the liquid cooling outlet 112 are respectively connected to the liquid cooling channel 101, and the direct cooling inlet 113 and the direct cooling outlet 114 are respectively connected to the direct cooling channel 100.

[0054] See also Figure 8As shown, in this embodiment, the fluid inlet and outlet device 115 is installed on one side of the cold plate body 11, and the fluid inlet and outlet device 115 is provided with a liquid cooling inlet 111, a liquid cooling outlet 112, a direct cooling inlet 113 and a direct cooling outlet 114, wherein the liquid cooling inlet 111 is connected to the first liquid cooling channel 1011, the liquid cooling outlet 112 is connected to the second liquid cooling channel 1012, and the direct cooling inlet 113 and the direct cooling outlet 114 are respectively connected to the direct cooling channel 102. The coolant flows into the first liquid-cooling channel 1011 through the liquid-cooling inlet 111, flows into the second liquid-cooling channel 1012 after passing through the first liquid-cooling channel 1011, and flows out from the liquid-cooling outlet 112 after passing through the second liquid-cooling channel 1012. The refrigerant flows into the direct-cooling channel 102 through the direct-cooling inlet 113, and flows out from the direct-cooling outlet 114 after flowing through the direct-cooling channel 102. Heat exchange is achieved between the coolant flowing through the first liquid-cooling channel 1011 and the second liquid-cooling channel 1012 and the refrigerant flowing through the direct-cooling channel 102.

[0055] It is understandable that the heat generated by the battery cell is taken away by the coolant and then immediately exchanged to the refrigerant. The coolant only serves as a heat transfer medium and does not store heat. Therefore, the coolant temperature will remain relatively constant along the flow path, enhancing the heat exchange between the battery cell and the coolant. In addition, the refrigerant flows directly in the liquid cooling plate, reducing pipe connections and further reducing costs and noise.

[0056] It should be noted that the flow direction of the coolant in the liquid cooling channel 101 is the same as or opposite to the flow direction of the refrigerant in the direct cooling channel 102. In this embodiment, the coolant is a water-ethylene glycol coolant, and the refrigerant is Freon. It is understandable that the coolant can also be set to other different coolants, and the refrigerant can also be set to other different refrigerant media, as long as the purpose of this application can be achieved.

[0057] See also Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, in this embodiment, the width of the first sub-channel 1001 in the liquid-cooling channel 101 is set between 25 mm and 35 mm, the height of the first sub-channel 1001 is set between 5 mm and 6 mm, and the width and height of the second sub-channel 1003 are 1.5 to 2 times the width and height of the first sub-channel 1001, respectively, so that when the cooling liquid and the refrigerant flow in the liquid-cooling channel 101 and the direct cooling channel 102, the heat exchange effect between the cooling liquid and the refrigerant can be effectively guaranteed to ensure its heat exchange effect and heat exchange efficiency.

[0058] See also Figure 1As shown, in the present embodiment, the cold plate body 11 is an integrated structure, and a plurality of liquid cooling channels 101 and direct cooling channels are provided in the cold plate body 11 along its thickness direction; of course, in some other embodiments, the cold plate body 11 can be configured to be formed by stacking a plurality of plates, for example, a plurality of liquid cooling plates provided with liquid cooling channels 101 and direct cooling plates provided with direct cooling channels can be alternately stacked along their thickness direction. By integrating liquid cooling and direct cooling into an integrated design, and the direct cooling is located between the liquid cooling on both sides, it is possible to avoid the condensation of nearby air to form water droplets due to the low refrigerant temperature, thereby avoiding safety hazards and improving its safety. In addition, in a high temperature environment, it can weaken the heat dissipation of the direct cooling plate to the environment, thereby further improving the heat exchange efficiency.

[0059] See also Figures 1 to 9 As shown, the utility model also proposes a cooling system, the cooling system 100 includes a battery cooling system, an air conditioning cooling system and a cold plate 10, the direct cooling channel 102 in the cold plate 10 is connected to the air conditioning cooling system, the liquid cooling channel 101 in the cold plate 10 is connected to the battery cooling system, the direct cooling inlet 113 of the direct cooling channel 102 is connected to the outlet of the condenser 120 through the expansion valve 110, the direct cooling outlet 114 of the direct cooling channel 102 is connected to the inlet of the condenser 120 through the compressor 130, and the liquid cooling inlet 111 and the liquid cooling outlet 112 of the liquid cooling channel 101 are respectively connected to the outlet and the inlet of the water pump 140. It should be noted that the structure of the cold plate 10 is the same or similar to the structure of the cold plate described in the above embodiment, and in order to avoid repetition, it will not be repeated here. It can be understood that the cold plate 10 allows the refrigerant and the coolant to exchange heat directly without the need for a plate heat exchanger, greatly reducing the cost of the battery pack liquid cooling system, while combining the dual advantages of direct cooling and liquid cooling, but avoiding the problems of uniform temperature difference in the direct cooling solution, complex control of the thermal management system, and low two-stage heat exchange efficiency of the liquid cooling solution. The refrigerant flows directly in the liquid cooling plate, reducing pipeline connections, further reducing costs and noise, and making the battery cooling system and the air conditioning cooling system still two independent systems that can be controlled separately, so the control strategy is relatively simple and has strong compatibility.

[0060] It should also be noted that when the cold plate 10 is installed in a battery module or battery pack, the density of the first sub-channels 1001 and the second sub-channels 1003 in the liquid cooling channel 101 of each layer and the direct cooling channel 102 can be set according to the arrangement of the battery cells in the battery module or battery pack and the arrangement of the heat generated by the battery cells. For example, the closer the multiple first sub-channels 1001 and the multiple second sub-channels 1003 are to the middle of the cold plate, the greater their density is, so that the cooling effect and cooling efficiency can be better improved.

[0061] The utility model proposes a cold plate and a cooling system. The cold plate adopts a multi-layer cold plate arranged with multi-layer liquid cooling channels and direct cooling channels, so that the refrigerant and the coolant can directly exchange heat without using a plate heat exchanger, which greatly reduces the cost of the battery pack liquid cooling system and combines the dual advantages of direct cooling and liquid cooling, but avoids the problems of uniform temperature difference of the direct cooling scheme, complex control of the thermal management system and low two-stage heat exchange efficiency of the liquid cooling scheme.

[0062] The utility model proposes a cold plate and a cooling system, in which the heat generated by the battery core is taken away by the coolant and then immediately exchanged to the refrigerant. The coolant only serves as a heat transfer medium and does not store heat. Therefore, the temperature of the coolant will remain relatively constant on the flow path, thereby enhancing the heat exchange between the battery core and the coolant; and the refrigerant flows directly in the liquid cooling plate, reducing pipeline connections, and further reducing costs and noise.

[0063] The utility model proposes a cold plate and a cooling system. By integrating liquid cooling and direct cooling into an integrated design, with the direct cooling located between the liquid cooling on both sides, it is possible to avoid the condensation of nearby air to form water droplets due to the low refrigerant temperature, thereby avoiding safety hazards and improving its safety. In a high temperature environment, it can weaken the heat dissipation of the direct cooling plate to the environment, further improving the heat exchange efficiency.

[0064] The utility model proposes a cold plate and a cooling system, which adopts a multi-layer cold plate design, wherein the direct cooling flow channel in the cold plate is connected to the air-conditioning cooling system, and the liquid cooling flow channel in the cold plate is connected to the battery cooling system, so that the battery cooling system and the air-conditioning cooling system are still two independent systems, and the two systems can be controlled separately, so the control strategy is relatively simple and has strong compatibility.

[0065] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present application and an explanation of the technical principles used. Those skilled in the art should understand that the scope involved in the present application is not limited to the technical solution formed by a specific combination of the above-mentioned technical features, but should also cover other technical solutions formed by any combination of the above-mentioned technical features or their equivalent features without departing from the concept of the utility model, such as a technical solution formed by replacing the above-mentioned features with (but not limited to) technical features with similar functions disclosed in this application.

[0066] Except for the technical features in the specification, the other technical features are known technologies to those skilled in the art. In order to highlight the innovative features of the present utility model, the other technical features will not be described in detail here.

Claims

1. A cold plate, characterized in that: include: A cold plate body, wherein at least two layers of liquid cooling channels and at least one layer of direct cooling channels are arranged in the cold plate body, the liquid cooling channels and the direct cooling channels are stacked along the thickness direction of the cold plate body, the direct cooling channels are located between the two layers of the liquid cooling channels, a coolant flows in the liquid cooling channels, and a refrigerant flows in the direct cooling channels.

2. The cold plate according to claim 1, characterized in that The at least two layers of liquid cooling channels are connected in series or in parallel with each other.

3. The cold plate according to claim 2, characterized in that It also includes a liquid cooling inlet and a liquid cooling outlet. When the at least two layers of liquid cooling channels are connected in series, the first and last layers of the at least two layers of liquid cooling channels are connected to the liquid cooling inlet and the liquid cooling outlet respectively. When the at least two layers of liquid-cooling channels are connected in parallel with each other, each layer of the liquid-cooling channels is respectively connected with the liquid-cooling inlet and the liquid-cooling outlet.

4. The cold plate according to claim 3, characterized in that Each layer of the liquid-cooling channel includes a plurality of first sub-channels connected in series, and the first and last two first sub-channels of the plurality of first sub-channels connected in series are respectively connected to the liquid-cooling inlet and the liquid-cooling outlet.

5. The cold plate according to claim 3, characterized in that Each layer of the liquid cooling channel includes a plurality of first sub-channels and a first confluence channel connected in parallel with each other. The plurality of parallel first sub-channels are connected to the first confluence channel, and the first confluence channel is connected to the liquid cooling inlet or the liquid cooling outlet.

6. The cold plate according to claim 1, characterized in that The direct cooling channel comprises a plurality of second sub-channels connected in series, and two second sub-channels located at the head and the tail of the plurality of second sub-channels connected in series are respectively connected to the direct cooling inlet and the direct cooling outlet.

7. The cold plate according to claim 1, characterized in that The direct cooling channel includes a plurality of second sub-channels and a second confluence channel connected in parallel with each other, the plurality of the second sub-channels connected in parallel are connected with the second confluence channel, and the second confluence channel is connected with the direct cooling inlet or the direct cooling outlet.

8. The cold plate according to claim 1, characterized in that The flow direction of the coolant in the liquid-cooling channel is the same as or opposite to the flow direction of the refrigerant in the direct-cooling channel.

9. The cold plate according to claim 1, characterized in that The coolant is water-ethylene glycol coolant, and the refrigerant is Freon.

10. A cooling system, characterized in that: It comprises a battery cooling system, an air conditioning cooling system and a cold plate as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the direct cooling channel in the cold plate is connected to the air conditioning cooling system, and the liquid cooling channel in the cold plate is connected to the battery cooling system.

Citation Information

Cited By

  • Battery device, refrigerant heat exchange component, energy storage device and electric device

    WO2026174921A1