High-capacity battery and electric equipment

Abstract

The utility model discloses a high-capacity battery and electric equipment. The high-capacity battery comprises n single batteries, n explosion venting branch pipe assemblies and an explosion venting collecting pipe, wherein n is an integer greater than 1; n first holes are formed in the explosion venting collecting pipe; the n explosion venting branch pipe assemblies are in one-to-one correspondence with the n single batteries, one end of each explosion venting branch pipe assembly is connected with one first hole in the explosion venting collecting pipe, and the other end of each explosion venting branch pipe assembly is connected with the top of the corresponding single battery and covers the explosion venting part of the corresponding single battery. According to the high-capacity battery disclosed by the utility model, each single battery in the high-capacity battery is connected with the explosion venting collecting pipe through the explosion venting branch pipe assembly, when a certain single battery in the high-capacity battery is subjected to thermal runaway, the explosion venting part on the single battery is opened, and thermal runaway smoke is discharged through the explosion venting collecting pipe, so that further spreading of thermal runaway is reduced or even avoided, and the safety of the battery is improved. And the safety of the high-capacity battery is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model belongs to the field of batteries, and particularly relates to a large-capacity battery and an electrical equipment using the same. Background Art

[0002] Common lithium-ion batteries are classified into button batteries, square batteries and cylindrical batteries according to their shapes.

[0003] In a square battery, the electrode assembly is arranged in the order of positive electrode - separator - negative electrode, and is assembled by using a stacking or winding process, and then is encapsulated into a square aluminum shell.

[0004] With the continuous development of technology, the market demand for batteries with high safety and large capacity is increasing. At present, in the market, multiple single cells are connected in parallel or in series to form a large-capacity battery (which can also be called a battery module or a battery pack).

[0005] Therefore, how to ensure the safety of the battery while improving the battery capacity has become a technical hot spot in the field of batteries. Summary of the Utility Model

[0006] In order to solve the problem of ensuring the safety of the battery while improving the battery capacity, a first aspect of the utility model provides a large-capacity battery.

[0007] The large-capacity battery includes n single cells, n explosion relief branch pipe assemblies and an explosion relief manifold; where n is an integer greater than 1;

[0008] The explosion relief manifold is provided with n first holes;

[0009] The n explosion relief branch pipe assemblies correspond to the n single cells one by one. One end of the explosion relief branch pipe assembly is connected to a first hole on the explosion relief manifold, and the other end of the explosion relief branch pipe assembly is connected to the top of the single cell and covers the explosion relief part of the single cell.

[0010] In the large-capacity battery of the utility model, each single cell is connected to an explosion relief manifold through an explosion relief branch pipe assembly. When a thermal runaway occurs in a certain single cell in the large-capacity battery, the explosion relief part on the single cell is opened, and the hot gas generated by the thermal runaway is discharged through the explosion relief manifold, reducing or even avoiding the further spread of the thermal runaway and improving the safety of the large-capacity battery.

[0011] The above explosion relief branch pipe assembly has the following two structures:

[0012] The first structure of the explosion relief branch pipe assembly is: the explosion relief branch pipe assembly includes a metal pipe arranged on the top of the single cell and a plastic sleeve 22 fixedly sleeved on the metal pipe; the plastic sleeve is in interference fit with the first hole.

[0013] In the explosion venting branch pipe assembly, the plastic sleeve is in interference fit with the first hole through deformation, realizing the sealed connection between the explosion venting branch pipe assembly and the explosion venting manifold pipe. During installation, the explosion venting manifold pipe is connected to the explosion venting branch pipe assembly by inserting it downward. Compared with directly using a metal pipe as the explosion venting branch pipe assembly and welding it to the explosion venting manifold pipe, it is convenient for assembly and easy to operate.

[0014] Furthermore, in the first type of explosion venting branch pipe assembly, the plastic sleeve is integrally conical, aiming to enable the explosion venting manifold pipe to smoothly achieve the insertion fit with the plastic sleeve.

[0015] Furthermore, a circular groove is provided on the outer wall of the above plastic sleeve, and the outer diameter of the bottom of the circular groove is larger than the aperture of the first hole. The design of this circular groove can achieve the reliable connection of the plastic sleeve to the first hole, and at the same time can further ensure the sealing between the plastic sleeve and the first hole.

[0016] The structure of the second type of explosion venting branch pipe assembly is: the explosion venting branch pipe assembly includes a metal pipe fixed to the top of the single battery and a plastic sleeve sleeved on the metal pipe; the plastic sleeve includes an external thread section and a wrench clamping section, and the external thread section is used for threaded connection with the first hole.

[0017] In this explosion venting branch pipe assembly, the plastic sleeve is threadedly connected to the first hole through the external thread section, and a wrench clamping section is provided on the plastic sleeve to facilitate the operator to achieve the threaded connection between the plastic sleeve and the first hole through a wrench.

[0018] Furthermore, for the processing and assembly of parts, the metal pipes in the above first type of explosion venting branch pipe assembly and the second type of explosion venting branch pipe assembly are integrally formed on the top of the single battery.

[0019] Furthermore, the above large-capacity battery further includes an electrolyte sharing pipe, and the electrolyte sharing pipe is communicated with the electrolyte area of each single battery.

[0020] The second aspect of the present utility model provides an electrical equipment, including a thermal runaway flue gas treatment device and at least one large-capacity battery, and the explosion venting manifold pipe of each large-capacity battery is connected to the thermal runaway flue gas treatment device; the thermal runaway flue gas treatment device adopts at least one of a buffer collection unit, an adsorption unit, and an ignition unit. Description of the Drawings

[0021] Figure 1 It is the structure diagram of the large-capacity battery in Embodiment 1;

[0022] Figure 2 It is the structure diagram of the single battery after assembling the explosion venting branch pipe assembly in Embodiment 1;

[0023] Figure 3 It is the structure diagram of the plastic sleeve in Embodiment 1;

[0024] Figure 4 Structural diagram of the explosion venting manifold pipe in Embodiment 1;

[0025] Figure 5 Structural diagram of the large-capacity battery in Embodiment 2;

[0026] Figure 6 Structural diagram of the single battery after assembling the explosion venting branch pipe assembly in Embodiment 2;

[0027] Figure 7 Structural diagram of the plastic sleeve in Embodiment 2;

[0028] Figure 8 Structural diagram of the electrolyte sharing pipeline;

[0029] Figure 9 Schematic diagram of the electrical equipment.

[0030] The reference signs in the figure are:

[0031] 1 - single battery, 2 - explosion venting branch pipe assembly, 21 - metal pipe, 22 - plastic sleeve, 221 - annular clamping groove, 222 - external thread section, 223 - wrench clamping section, 3 - explosion venting manifold pipe, 4 - first hole, 5 - electrolyte sharing pipeline;

[0032] 100 - thermal runaway flue gas treatment device, 101 - buffer collection unit, 102 - adsorption unit, 103 - ignition unit, 200 - large-capacity battery. Detailed implementation manners

[0033] To make the above objects, features, and advantages of the present utility model more obvious and understandable, the following will describe the detailed implementation manners of the present utility model with reference to the accompanying drawings of the specification. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present utility model, rather than all embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present utility model, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative efforts shall fall within the protection scope of the present utility model.

[0034] In the following description, many specific details are set forth to fully understand the present utility model. However, the present utility model can also be implemented in other ways different from those described herein. Those skilled in the art can make similar extensions without departing from the connotation of the present utility model. Therefore, the present utility model is not limited by the specific embodiments disclosed below.

[0035] In the description of the present utility model, it should be noted that the orientation or positional relationship indicated by terms such as "upper, lower" is based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the drawings. It is only for the convenience of describing the present utility model and simplifying the description, rather than indicating or implying that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, it should not be construed as a limitation to the present utility model. In addition, terms such as "first, second, third, fourth, etc." are only used for descriptive purposes and cannot be construed as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0036] The basic design concept of the present utility model is that in this large-capacity battery, multiple single cells discharge and process the thermal runaway flue gas through a single explosion vent manifold, and each single cell is connected to the explosion vent manifold through an explosion vent branch pipe assembly.

[0037] Embodiment 1

[0038] As Figure 1 shown, this embodiment provides a large-capacity battery, including 9 single cells 1, 9 explosion vent branch pipe assemblies 2, and a single explosion vent manifold 3;

[0039] Among them, the single cell 1 includes an upper cover plate, a lower cover plate, a cylinder body, and an electrode assembly; here, the electrode assembly can be called an electrode assembly, which is arranged in the order of positive electrode, separator, and negative electrode, and is assembled by using a stacking or winding process. Here, the electrode assembly can also be a commercially available square shell battery; the upper cover plate, the cylinder body, and the lower cover plate form the square shell battery housing, and the electrode assembly is arranged inside the single cell housing.

[0040] 9 single cells 1 are connected in parallel to form a battery string, and the explosion vent manifold 3 is located directly above the battery string and extends along the direction of the arrangement of the single cells;

[0041] As Figure 2 shown, 9 first holes 4 are opened on the explosion vent manifold 3;

[0042] The 9 first holes 4 correspond to the 9 single cells 1 one by one;

[0043] As Figure 3 and Figure 4 shown, in this embodiment, the explosion vent branch pipe assembly 2 includes a metal pipe 21 and a plastic sleeve 22. The metal pipe 21 is vertically fixed on the single cell 1 and covers the explosion vent part of the single cell 1; the plastic sleeve 22 is fixedly sleeved on the metal pipe 21; when the explosion vent manifold is assembled with the explosion vent branch pipe assembly, the plastic sleeve 22 is hermetically connected with the first hole 4 in an interference fit manner. When a thermal runaway occurs in a certain single cell in the large-capacity battery, the explosion vent part on the single cell opens, and the thermal runaway flue gas in the single cell sequentially passes through the explosion vent branch pipe assembly and the explosion vent manifold and is discharged.

[0044] It should be noted that in this embodiment, there are three ways to fixedly arrange the plastic sleeve 22 on the metal tube 21 as follows:

[0045] 1. The plastic sleeve 22 can be fixedly sleeved on the metal tube 21 by means of threaded connection;

[0046] 2. It can be formed on the outer wall of the metal tube 21 by means of injection molding.

[0047] 3. The inner diameter of the plastic sleeve 22 is slightly smaller than the outer diameter of the metal tube 21, and the two are fixedly connected by means of interference fit.

[0048] Preferably, in order to make the plastic sleeve 22 smoothly inserted into the first hole 4 of the explosion venting manifold, the overall design of the plastic sleeve 22 in this embodiment is conical.

[0049] Preferably, in order to avoid the problem that when the sealing sleeve 22 and the first hole 4 are simply used with interference fit, the excessive pressure of the thermal runaway flue gas ejected from the single cell may cause the sealing sleeve and the first hole to become loose, and then cause the thermal runaway flue gas to leak from the explosion venting branch pipe assembly, a circular clamping groove 221 is provided on the outer wall of the sealing sleeve 22 in this embodiment. The outer diameter of the bottom of the circular clamping groove 221 is larger than the aperture of the first hole 4. That is to say, on the basis of the interference fit between the plastic sleeve and the first hole, the clamping limit between the two is also increased.

[0050] Preferably, in order to avoid the problem that the single cell may be damaged when the metal tube 21 is fixed to the single cell 1 by means of welding, the metal tube 21 in this embodiment is integrally formed on the top of the single cell 1. That is to say, the integral forming of the metal tube and the upper cover plate is completed during the production process of the upper cover plate of the single cell.

[0051] Preferably, since the thermal runaway flue gas ejected during the thermal runaway of the single cell has a very high temperature, in order to avoid the problem that the plastic sleeve deforms at high temperature and causes leakage at the explosion venting branch pipe assembly, the plastic sleeve 22 is made of a high-temperature resistant plastic material.

[0052] In addition, it should also be noted that: the explosion venting manifold 3 needs to have high-temperature resistant performance, and it can be a metal pipe fitting or a pipeline made of a high-temperature resistant plastic material. Considering various aspects such as cost and strength, the explosion venting manifold 3 in this embodiment is made of a metal aluminum pipe. When a metal aluminum pipe is used as the explosion venting manifold, the plastic sleeve 22 also plays an insulating role, avoiding electrical conduction between the metal tube 21 and the explosion venting manifold 3 in the explosion venting branch pipe assembly 2, and improving the overall safety of the large-capacity battery.

[0053] Embodiment 2

[0054] As Figure 5As shown in the figure, this embodiment provides a large-capacity battery, which includes 9 single cells 1, 9 explosion vent branch pipe assemblies 2, and one explosion vent manifold 3;

[0055] Among them, the single cell includes an upper cover plate, a lower cover plate, a cylinder body, and a battery core assembly; the battery core assembly described here can be called an electrode assembly, which is composed of a positive electrode, a separator, and a negative electrode arranged in sequence and assembled by a stacking or winding process. The battery core assembly described here can also be a commercially available square shell battery; the upper cover plate, the cylinder body, and the lower cover plate form the square shell battery housing, and the battery core assembly is arranged inside the single cell housing.

[0056] The 9 single cells 1 are connected in parallel to form a battery string. The explosion vent manifold 3 is located directly above the battery string and extends along the direction in which the single cells are arranged;

[0057] As Figure 2 shown, 9 first holes 4 are opened on the explosion vent manifold 3, and the first holes 4 are threaded holes;

[0058] The 9 first holes 4 correspond to the 9 single cells 1 one by one;

[0059] As Figure 6 and Figure 7 shown, in this embodiment, the explosion vent branch pipe assembly 2 includes a metal pipe 21 and a plastic sleeve 22. The metal pipe 21 is vertically fixed on the single cell 1 and covers the explosion vent part of the single cell 1; the plastic sleeve 22 is sleeved on the metal pipe 21. The plastic sleeve 22 includes an external thread section 222 and a wrench clamping section 223; when the explosion vent manifold is assembled with the explosion vent branch pipe assembly, the plastic sleeve 22 is hermetically connected to the first hole 4 by a threaded connection. When a thermal runaway occurs in a certain single cell in the large-capacity battery, the explosion vent part on the single cell opens, and the thermal runaway flue gas in the single cell passes through the explosion vent branch pipe assembly and the explosion vent manifold in sequence and is discharged.

[0060] Preferably, in order to avoid the problem that the single cell may be damaged when the metal pipe 21 is fixed to the single cell 1 by welding, in this embodiment, the metal pipe 21 is integrally formed on the top of the single cell 1, that is to say, the integral forming of the metal pipe and the upper cover plate is completed during the manufacturing process of the upper cover plate of the single cell.

[0061] Preferably, since the thermal runaway flue gas ejected during the thermal runaway of the single cell has a very high temperature, in order to avoid the problem that the plastic sleeve deforms at high temperature, resulting in leakage at the explosion vent branch pipe assembly, the plastic sleeve is made of a high-temperature resistant plastic material.

[0062] In addition, it should also be noted that the explosion vent manifold needs to have high-temperature resistance. It can be a metal pipe fitting or a pipe made of high-temperature-resistant plastic material. Considering various aspects such as cost and strength, in this embodiment, the explosion vent manifold is made of metal aluminum pipe. When using a metal aluminum pipe as the explosion vent manifold, the plastic sleeve also plays an insulating role, preventing electrical conduction between the metal pipes in the explosion vent branch assembly and the explosion vent manifold, and improving the overall safety of the large-capacity battery.

[0063] As Figure 8 shown, on the basis of Embodiment 1 and Embodiment 2, the large-capacity battery further includes an electrolyte sharing pipe 5. By using this electrolyte sharing pipe 5 to communicate with the inner cavities of each single battery, the electrolytes of each single battery are shared to ensure the consistency of each single battery. That is, the electrolyte cavities of each single battery are connected, so that the electrolytes of all single batteries are in the same system, reducing the differences between the electrolytes of each single battery, improving the consistency between each single battery to a certain extent, and thus improving the cycle life of the large-capacity battery to a certain extent.

[0064] Embodiment 3

[0065] This embodiment provides an electrical device, which can be a vehicle, a ship, a spacecraft, an energy storage device, etc. The vehicle can be a fuel vehicle, a gas vehicle or a new energy vehicle. The new energy vehicle can be a pure electric vehicle, a hybrid vehicle or an extended-range vehicle, etc.; the spacecraft includes an airplane, a rocket, a space shuttle and a spaceship, etc.; the energy storage device can be a household energy storage device, an industrial and commercial energy storage device, a power plant power generation-side energy storage device, etc. The embodiments of the present application do not make special restrictions on the above electrical devices.

[0066] As Figure 9 shown, the electrical device includes a thermal runaway flue gas treatment device 100 and at least one large-capacity battery 200 as described in Embodiment 1 or Embodiment 2. The explosion vent manifold of each large-capacity battery 200 is connected to the thermal runaway flue gas treatment device 100, and the thermal runaway flue gas treatment unit is used to safely treat the substances released during thermal runaway;

[0067] Specifically, the thermal runaway flue gas treatment device 100 adopts at least one of a buffer collection unit 101, an adsorption unit 102, and an ignition unit 103.

[0068] The buffer collection unit 101 buffers the thermal runaway flue gas of the large-capacity battery and collects the electrolyte carried in the thermal runaway flue gas.

[0069] The adsorption unit 102 absorbs the gas, electrolyte, etc. in the thermal runaway flue gas by the principle of adsorption.

[0070] The ignition unit 103 uses the principle of combustion to treat the thermal runaway flue gas by combustion.

[0071] From the perspective of the treatment effect of the thermal runaway flue gas, the following several methods can be selected as the thermal runaway flue gas treatment device:

[0072] 1. Buffer collection unit + adsorption unit; 2. Buffer collection unit + ignition unit; 3. Adsorption unit + ignition unit; 4. Buffer collection unit + adsorption unit + ignition unit.

Claims

1. A large capacity battery, characterized in that: It comprises n single cells, n explosion-proof branch pipe assemblies and an explosion-proof collector; wherein n is an integer greater than 1; The explosion relief manifold is provided with n first holes; The n explosion-proof branch pipe assemblies correspond to the n single cells one by one, one end of the explosion-proof branch pipe assembly is connected to a first hole on the explosion-proof manifold, and the other end of the explosion-proof branch pipe assembly is connected to the top of the single cell and covers the explosion-proof part of the single cell.

2. The large-capacity battery according to claim 1, characterized in that: The explosion relief branch pipe assembly comprises a metal tube arranged on the top of the single battery and a plastic sleeve fixedly sleeved on the metal tube; the plastic sleeve is used for interference fit with the first hole.

3. The large-capacity battery according to claim 2, characterized in that: The plastic sleeve is tapered as a whole.

4. The large-capacity battery according to claim 3, characterized in that: An annular groove is arranged on the outer wall of the plastic sleeve, and the outer diameter of the groove bottom of the annular groove is larger than the aperture of the first hole.

5. The large-capacity battery according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first hole is a threaded hole; the explosion relief branch pipe assembly includes a metal tube fixed to the top of the single battery and a plastic sleeve sleeved on the metal tube; the plastic sleeve includes an external thread section and a wrench clamping section, and the external thread section is used for threaded connection with the first hole.

6. The large capacity battery according to any one of claims 2 to 5, characterized in that: The metal tube is integrally formed on the top of the single battery.

7. The large-capacity battery according to claim 6, characterized in that: The plastic sleeve is made of high temperature resistant plastic material.

8. The large-capacity battery according to claim 7, characterized in that: It also includes an electrolyte sharing pipe, which is connected to the electrolyte area of ​​each single battery.

9. An electrical device, characterized in that: It comprises a thermal runaway flue gas treatment device and at least one large-capacity battery, wherein the explosion venting manifold of each large-capacity battery is connected to the thermal runaway flue gas treatment device; the thermal runaway flue gas treatment device adopts at least one of a buffer collection unit, an adsorption unit and an ignition unit.

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