Thermal management system of liquid-cooled phase-change hybrid battery

Abstract

The utility model discloses a liquid-cooled phase-change hybrid battery thermal management system which comprises a battery cell, a shell, a first liquid-cooled plate and a second liquid-cooled plate, the shell is formed by arranging a plurality of hexagonal shells in a honeycomb shape, each battery cell is placed in the corresponding hexagonal shell, phase change materials are filled between the battery cells and the hexagonal shells, fins are arranged at the midpoints of the six surfaces of each hexagonal shell, one end of each fin is in direct contact with the corresponding battery cell, and the other end of each fin extends towards the corresponding hexagonal shell. The phase change material is divided into six equal parts; the first liquid cooling plate and the second liquid cooling plate are communicated through a liquid cooling channel, the first liquid cooling plate is provided with a working medium flow-in port, the second liquid cooling plate is provided with a working medium flow-out port, and a working medium flows in from the working medium flow-in port of the first liquid cooling plate, flows to the second liquid cooling plate at the lower end of the battery cell through the liquid cooling channel and finally flows out from the working medium flow-out port; according to the utility model, phase-change material cooling and liquid cooling are reasonably coupled, and the battery module is compact in structure, convenient to install and simple in structure.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to the technical field of battery thermal management, in particular to a liquid-cooled phase-change hybrid battery thermal management system. Background Art

[0002] Power batteries are the core components of electric vehicles, among which lithium-ion batteries are widely used in the field of electric vehicles due to their special advantages such as high energy density, long cycle life, light weight and environmental protection. However, lithium-ion batteries generate heat during the charging and discharging process, which leads to temperature rise and inconsistent cell temperature. If the heat continues to accumulate and cannot be dissipated efficiently, it is easy to cause a vicious cycle of "high temperature-high heat-high temperature", and in severe cases, thermal runaway. Therefore, an efficient battery thermal management system with excellent uniform temperature control performance is the key to keeping lithium batteries within the optimal operating temperature range (15℃ to 35℃) and achieving optimal output performance.

[0003] Today's research directions for thermal management systems are mainly aimed at three cooling methods: air cooling, liquid cooling, and phase change material cooling. Among them, the air cooling method has been unable to meet the high-demand batteries, and the liquid cooling method has high heat dissipation efficiency but the system is complex and prone to leakage. In addition, even for the potential phase change material cooling method, the thermal conductivity of ordinary PCM is very low and it is prone to leakage. In order to better meet the heat dissipation needs of high energy density batteries, the above two or more thermal management coupling systems have also become a research hotspot, which can further improve and perfect the thermal management system. Therefore, the utility model proposes a liquid-cooled phase change hybrid battery thermal management system. Utility Model Content

[0004] The purpose of the utility model is to overcome the shortcomings and deficiencies of the prior art and to provide a liquid-cooled phase-change hybrid battery thermal management system, which is connected to a first liquid cooling plate and a second liquid cooling plate distributed up and down by a liquid cooling channel, and a circuitous structure channel is also provided inside to solve the problems raised in the above-mentioned background technology.

[0005] The purpose of the utility model is achieved through the following technical solutions:

[0006] A liquid-cooled phase-change hybrid battery thermal management system, comprising battery cells, the battery cells are connected in series and parallel to form a battery module, and also comprises a housing, a first liquid cooling plate and a second liquid cooling plate arranged at the upper and lower ends of the battery cells;

[0007] The shell is composed of a plurality of hexagonal shells arranged in a honeycomb shape, each battery cell is placed in the hexagonal shell, and a phase change material is filled between the battery cell and the hexagonal shell. Ribs are provided at the midpoints of the six surfaces of the hexagonal shell, one end of the rib is in direct contact with the battery cell, and the other end extends toward the hexagonal shell, thereby dividing the phase change material into six equal parts;

[0008] The first liquid cooling plate is connected to the second liquid cooling plate through a liquid cooling channel. The first liquid cooling plate is provided with a working fluid flow inlet, and the second liquid cooling plate is provided with a working fluid flow outlet. The working fluid flows into the working fluid flow inlet of the first liquid cooling plate, flows to the second liquid cooling plate at the lower end of the battery cell through the liquid cooling channel, and finally flows out from the working fluid flow outlet.

[0009] Furthermore, the liquid cooling channels are vertically distributed in the shell, parallel to the battery core, and the liquid cooling channels are located among the six vertices of the hexagonal shell.

[0010] Furthermore, a tortuous structure channel is provided inside the first liquid cooling plate and the second liquid cooling plate, and the working medium diffuses in the tortuous structure channel. The inlet and outlet of the liquid cooling channel are arranged in the path of the tortuous structure channel, and the tortuous structure channel is respectively connected to the working medium inlet and the working medium outlet.

[0011] Furthermore, the circuitous structure channel is bent to form a circuitous S-shaped structure, so that the working medium flows through the top or bottom of each battery cell.

[0012] As a preferred solution, the housing is made of a high thermal conductivity material, specifically aluminum or copper.

[0013] As a preferred solution, the phase change material adopts insulating, flame retardant and three-dimensional high thermal conductivity skeleton composite phase change material, specifically metal foam, porous polymer, carbon-based three-dimensional porous material, porous ceramic material.

[0014] As a preferred solution, the cooling medium in the liquid cooling channel during high-temperature heat dissipation is air, liquid water, ethylene glycol and gallium-based alloy liquid metal, and the cooling medium during low-temperature heating is boiling water.

[0015] The utility model also provides a method for implementing a liquid-cooled phase-change hybrid battery thermal management system, comprising:

[0016] When the battery cell is working in a high temperature environment, the battery cell generates a large amount of heat during charging and discharging, and the temperature of the battery pack continues to rise. Part of the heat generated by the battery cell is transferred to the phase change material through heat conduction, causing the phase change material to heat up, and the other part exchanges heat with the first liquid cooling plate and the second liquid cooling plate to achieve further cooling; and part of the heat of the phase change material is heat exchanged through direct contact with the first liquid cooling plate and the second liquid cooling plate, and the other part is dissipated through heat transfer of the shell and fins, achieving the effect of secondary heat dissipation and enhanced heat dissipation; in addition, a cooling medium is added to the working medium flow inlet, and the cooling medium flows rapidly in the circuitous structure channel after entering the first liquid cooling plate, flows to the second liquid cooling plate through the vertically distributed liquid cooling channel, flows in the circuitous structure pipeline in the second liquid cooling plate, and finally flows out of the system from the working medium flow outlet; part of the heat of the shell is taken away by the liquid cooling channel, and the other part is diffused into the air;

[0017] In a low-temperature environment, the heating medium is introduced into the first liquid cooling plate, flows rapidly in the circuitous structure channel of the first liquid cooling plate, then flows from the liquid cooling channel to the second liquid cooling plate, then flows in the circuitous structure pipeline in the second liquid cooling plate, and finally flows out of the system from the medium flow outlet to achieve low-temperature heating.

[0018] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the utility model are:

[0019] The battery thermal management system of the present invention rationally couples phase change material cooling and liquid cooling together, and the battery module has a compact structure, is easy to install, and has a simple structure. By placing each battery cell in a hexagonal shell, phase change material is filled between the battery cell and the hexagonal shell, and ribs are provided at the midpoints of the six surfaces of the hexagonal shell, one end of the rib is in direct contact with the battery cell, and the other end extends toward the hexagonal shell, thereby spacing the phase change material into six equal parts. The phase change material directly contacts the battery cell and can quickly take away the heat emitted by the battery cell. One end of the rib cross-cuts into the phase change material, which can not only directly absorb the heat emitted by the battery cell, but also space the phase change material into six equal parts. While strengthening heat transfer, the rib can also evenly transfer the heat of the battery cell to each hexagonal shell, thereby achieving multi-directional heat dissipation, avoiding local overheating in the thermal management system, and ensuring temperature consistency. Secondly, the present invention arranges a first liquid cooling plate and a second liquid cooling plate at the upper and lower ends of the battery cell. The first liquid cooling plate and The first and second liquid cooling plates are connected by a liquid cooling channel. The first liquid cooling plate is provided with a working medium flow inlet, and the second liquid cooling plate is provided with a working medium flow outlet. The working medium flows into the working medium flow inlet of the first liquid cooling plate, flows to the second liquid cooling plate at the lower end of the battery cell through the liquid cooling channel, and finally flows out from the working medium flow outlet; the first liquid cooling plate and the second liquid cooling plate arranged at the upper and lower ends of the battery cell can not only absorb the heat of the battery cell pole, but also have a circuitous structure channel inside the two, which is bent to form an S-shaped structure, so that the working medium flows through the top or bottom end of each battery cell, ensuring the temperature consistency of the battery cell pole, and realizing high-temperature heat dissipation and low-temperature heating by the introduction of different working mediums; in addition, the first liquid cooling plate and the second liquid cooling plate are connected by a liquid cooling channel, and the working medium vertically enters the second liquid cooling plate from the first liquid cooling plate, so that the working medium can not only diffuse in the horizontal plane on the battery cell pole, but also flow through the vertical liquid cooling channel surrounding the battery cell, thereby enhancing the heat transfer effect and realizing multi-directional thermal management of the battery cell. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020] Figure 1 This is an exploded diagram of the overall structural connection of the liquid-cooled phase-change hybrid battery thermal management system proposed by the utility model;

[0021] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of the liquid-cooled phase-change hybrid battery thermal management system proposed by the utility model;

[0022] Figure 3This is a schematic diagram of the partial disassembly structure proposed by the utility model;

[0023] Figure 4 This is a cross-sectional view of the first liquid cooling plate proposed by the present utility model;

[0024] Figure 5 This is a working medium flow diagram of the liquid cooling channel proposed by the utility model;

[0025] In the figure: 1. first liquid cooling plate; 2. working fluid flow inlet; 3. shell; 4. liquid cooling channel; 5. battery cell; 6. ribs; 7. phase change material; 8. second liquid cooling plate; 9. working fluid flow outlet; 10. circuitous structure channel. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] The present invention is further described in detail below in conjunction with embodiments and drawings, but the implementation manner of the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0027] See also Figure 1-5 , this embodiment provides a technical solution:

[0028] A liquid-cooled phase-change hybrid battery thermal management system, comprising a battery cell 5, wherein the battery cells 5 are connected in series and parallel to form a battery module, and further comprising a shell 3, a first liquid-cooling plate 1 and a second liquid-cooling plate 8 arranged at the upper and lower ends of the battery cell 5; the shell 3 is composed of a plurality of hexagonal shells arranged in a honeycomb shape, each battery cell 5 is placed in the hexagonal shell, and a phase-change material 7 is filled between the battery cell 5 and the hexagonal shell, and ribs 6 are provided at the midpoints of the six surfaces of the hexagonal shell, one end of the ribs 6 is in direct contact with the battery cell 5, and the other end extends toward the hexagonal shell, thereby dividing the phase-change material 7 into six equal parts; the first liquid-cooling plate 1 and the second liquid-cooling plate 8 are connected through a liquid-cooling channel 4, the first liquid-cooling plate 1 is provided with a working medium flow inlet 2, and the second liquid-cooling plate 8 is provided with a working medium flow outlet 9, the working medium flows into the working medium flow inlet 2 of the first liquid-cooling plate 1, flows to the second liquid-cooling plate 8 at the lower end of the battery cell 5 through the liquid-cooling channel 4, and finally flows out from the working medium flow outlet 9;

[0029] The battery thermal management system of the utility model reasonably couples the cooling of the phase change material 7 and the liquid cooling together, and the battery module has a compact structure, is easy to install, and has a simple structure; by placing each battery cell 5 in a hexagonal shell, the phase change material 7 is filled between the battery cell 5 and the hexagonal shell, and ribs 6 are provided at the midpoints of the six surfaces of the hexagonal shell, one end of the rib 6 is in direct contact with the battery cell 5, and the other end extends toward the hexagonal shell, thereby dividing the phase change material 7 into six equal parts, and the phase change material 7 directly contacts the battery cell 5 to quickly take away the heat emitted by the battery cell 5, and one end of the rib 6 cross-cuts into the phase change material 7, which can not only directly absorb the heat emitted by the battery cell 5, but also divide the phase change material 7 into six equal parts, while strengthening the heat transfer, it can also evenly transfer the heat of the battery cell 5 to each hexagonal shell, thereby realizing multi-directional heat dissipation, avoiding local overheating in the thermal management system, and ensuring temperature consistency; secondly, the utility model arranges a first liquid cooling plate 1 and a second liquid cooling plate 8 at the upper and lower ends of the battery cell 5, and the first liquid cooling plate 1 and the second liquid cooling plate 8 are connected by a liquid cooling channel 4, the first liquid cooling plate 1 is provided with a working medium flow inlet 2, and the second liquid cooling plate 8 is provided with a working medium flow outlet 9. The working medium flows into the working medium flow inlet 2 of the first liquid cooling plate 1, flows to the second liquid cooling plate 8 at the lower end of the battery cell 5 through the liquid cooling channel 4, and finally flows out from the working medium flow outlet 9; the first liquid cooling plate 1 and the second liquid cooling plate 8 arranged at the upper and lower ends of the battery cell 5 can not only absorb the heat of the battery cell 5 pole, but also have a circuitous structure channel 10 arranged inside the two, and the circuitous structure channel 10 is bent to form The S-shaped structure allows the working fluid to flow through the top or bottom of each battery cell 5, ensuring the temperature consistency of the battery cell 5 poles, and realizing high-temperature heat dissipation and low-temperature heating by the introduction of different working fluids; in addition, the first liquid cooling plate 1 and the second liquid cooling plate 8 are connected through the liquid cooling channel 4, and the working fluid vertically enters the second liquid cooling plate 8 from the first liquid cooling plate 1, so that the working fluid can not only diffuse in the horizontal plane on the battery cell 5 poles, but also flow through the vertical liquid cooling channel 4 surrounding the battery cell 5, thereby enhancing the heat transfer effect and realizing multi-directional thermal management of the battery cell 5.

[0030] In this embodiment, Figure 3 and Figure 5 As shown, the liquid cooling channel 4 is vertically distributed in the shell 3, parallel to the battery cell 5, and the position of the liquid cooling channel 4 is located at the six vertices of the hexagonal shell; the liquid cooling channel 4 of this embodiment serves as a connecting pipe between the first liquid cooling plate 1 and the second liquid cooling plate 8, and it vertically surrounds the battery cell 5, so that in addition to the phase change material 7 and the fins 6 transferring heat on the side wall of the battery cell 5, the battery cell 5 also has an additional layer of liquid cooling channel 4 for heat transfer. Figure 3 As shown, in addition to the hexagonal shell at the edge of the battery thermal management system, the six vertices of the internal hexagonal shell are provided with liquid cooling channels 4, which ensure the heat transfer effect in multiple directions, especially during low-temperature heating.

[0031] In this embodiment, Figure 4 and Figure 5 As shown, the first liquid cooling plate 1 and the second liquid cooling plate 8 are provided with a circuitous structure channel 10 inside, the working medium diffuses in the circuitous structure channel 10, the inlet and outlet of the liquid cooling channel 4 are arranged in the path of the circuitous structure channel 10, and the circuitous structure channel 10 is connected with the working medium inlet 2 and the working medium outlet 9 respectively; Figure 4 The inlet and outlet of the liquid cooling channel 4 are alternately arranged in the path of the circuitous structure channel 10 to correspond to the six vertices of the hexagonal shell.

[0032] In this embodiment, Figure 4 and Figure 5 As shown, the circuitous structure channel 10 is bent to form a circuitous S-shaped structure, so that the working medium flows through the top or bottom of each battery cell 5; Figure 5 , the black arrow indicates the flow direction of the working medium. In this embodiment, when high-temperature heat dissipation or low-temperature heating is performed, the working medium is added to the working medium inlet 2. After the working medium enters the first liquid cooling plate 1, it flows rapidly in the circuitous structure channel 10, flows through the vertically distributed liquid cooling channel 4 to the second liquid cooling plate 8, flows in the circuitous structure pipeline in the second liquid cooling plate 8, and finally flows out of the system from the working medium outlet 9.

[0033] In order to ensure the structural stability of the battery thermal management system, the shell 3 is made of high thermal conductivity material, specifically aluminum or copper; the thermal management system shell 3 made of metal aluminum and copper not only has excellent thermal conductivity, but also has good mechanical strength.

[0034] In order to further improve the heat dissipation efficiency of this embodiment, the phase change material 7 adopts insulating, flame retardant and three-dimensional high thermal conductivity skeleton composite phase change material 7, specifically metal foam, porous polymer, carbon-based three-dimensional porous material, porous ceramic material; the above materials include but are not limited to: metal foam (foam copper, foam aluminum, foam nickel) / paraffin / graphite composite phase change material 7, paraffin / nano flame retardant composite phase change material 7, paraffin / carbon nanotube high thermal conductivity composite phase change material 7, paraffin / graphene high thermal conductivity composite phase change material 7, graphene coated foam nickel and paraffin composite phase change material 7, porous SiC ceramic / paraffin composite phase change material 7, etc.

[0035] In order to further improve the heat dissipation and heating efficiency of this embodiment, the cooling medium in the liquid cooling channel 4 during high-temperature heat dissipation is air, liquid water, ethylene glycol and gallium-based alloy liquid metal, and the working medium during low-temperature heating is boiling water.

[0036] On the basis of the above technical solution, this embodiment further proposes a method for implementing a liquid-cooled phase-change hybrid battery thermal management system, including:

[0037] When the battery cell 5 is working in a high temperature environment, the battery cell 5 generates a large amount of heat during charging and discharging, and the temperature of the battery pack continues to rise. Part of the heat generated by the battery cell 5 is transferred to the phase change material 7 through heat conduction, so that the phase change material 7 is heated up, and the other part exchanges heat with the first liquid cooling plate 1 and the second liquid cooling plate 8 to achieve further cooling; and part of the heat of the phase change material 7 is heat exchanged by direct contact with the first liquid cooling plate 1 and the second liquid cooling plate 8, and the other part is dissipated through the shell 3 and the fins 6, so as to achieve the effect of secondary heat dissipation and enhanced heat dissipation; in addition, a cooling medium is added to the working medium inlet 2, and after the cooling medium enters the first liquid cooling plate 1, it flows rapidly in the circuitous structure channel 10, flows to the second liquid cooling plate 8 through the vertically distributed liquid cooling channel 4, flows in the circuitous structure pipeline in the second liquid cooling plate 8, and finally flows out of the system from the working medium outlet 9; part of the heat of the shell 3 is taken away by the liquid cooling channel 4, and the other part is diffused into the air;

[0038] In a low-temperature environment, the heating medium is introduced into the first liquid cooling plate 1, flows rapidly in the circuitous structure channel 10 of the first liquid cooling plate 1, then flows from the liquid cooling channel 4 to the second liquid cooling plate 8, then flows in the circuitous structure pipeline in the second liquid cooling plate 8, and finally flows out of the system from the medium flow outlet 9 to achieve low-temperature heating.

[0039] The above is a preferred implementation mode of the present invention, but the implementation mode of the present invention is not limited by the above content. Any other changes, modifications, substitutions, combinations, and simplifications that do not deviate from the spirit and principle of the present invention should be equivalent replacement methods and are included in the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A liquid-cooled phase-change hybrid battery thermal management system, comprising battery cells, wherein the battery cells are connected in series and parallel to form a battery module, characterized in that: It also includes a housing, a first liquid cooling plate and a second liquid cooling plate disposed at the upper and lower ends of the battery cell; The shell is composed of a plurality of hexagonal shells arranged in a honeycomb shape, each battery cell is placed in the hexagonal shell, and a phase change material is filled between the battery cell and the hexagonal shell. Ribs are provided at the midpoints of the six surfaces of the hexagonal shell, one end of the rib is in direct contact with the battery cell, and the other end extends toward the hexagonal shell, thereby dividing the phase change material into six equal parts; The first liquid cooling plate is connected to the second liquid cooling plate through a liquid cooling channel. The first liquid cooling plate is provided with a working fluid flow inlet, and the second liquid cooling plate is provided with a working fluid flow outlet. The working fluid flows into the working fluid flow inlet of the first liquid cooling plate, flows to the second liquid cooling plate at the lower end of the battery cell through the liquid cooling channel, and finally flows out from the working fluid flow outlet.

2. The liquid-cooled phase-change hybrid battery thermal management system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The liquid cooling channels are vertically distributed in the shell and parallel to the battery core, and the liquid cooling channels are located among the six vertices of the hexagonal shell.

3. The liquid-cooled phase-change hybrid battery thermal management system according to claim 1, characterized in that: A tortuous structure channel is provided inside the first liquid cooling plate and the second liquid cooling plate, and the working medium diffuses in the tortuous structure channel. The inlet and outlet of the liquid cooling channel are arranged in the path of the tortuous structure channel, and the tortuous structure channel is connected to the working medium inlet and the working medium outlet respectively.

4. The liquid-cooled phase-change hybrid battery thermal management system according to claim 3, characterized in that: The circuitous structure channel is bent to form a circuitous S-shaped structure, so that the working medium flows through the top end or the bottom end of each battery cell.

5. The liquid-cooled phase-change hybrid battery thermal management system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The shell is made of high thermal conductivity material, specifically aluminum or copper.

6. The liquid-cooled phase-change hybrid battery thermal management system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The phase change material adopts insulating, flame retardant and three-dimensional high thermal conductivity skeleton composite phase change material, specifically metal foam, porous polymer, carbon-based three-dimensional porous material, porous ceramic material.

7. The liquid-cooled phase-change hybrid battery thermal management system according to claim 1, characterized in that: During high-temperature heat dissipation, the cooling medium in the liquid cooling channel is air, liquid water, ethylene glycol and gallium-based alloy liquid metal, and during low-temperature heating, the cooling medium is boiling water.

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