Battery pack and vehicle

Abstract

The utility model provides a battery pack and a vehicle, the battery pack comprises a battery cell group, a cold plate and a first flow baffle, the battery pack comprises the battery cell group, the cold plate and the first flow baffle, the battery cell group is provided with first side walls oppositely arranged along a first direction, the cold plate abuts against the first side walls, the first flow baffle is arranged on at least one side of the first direction of the battery cell group, and the first flow baffle is arranged on the first side of the first direction. The first flow baffle is used for limiting the flowing range of the cooling medium flowing out of the cold plate in the first direction. In the case of thermal runaway of the battery cells of the battery cell group, the cold plate is melted, the cooling medium in the cold plate flows out, and the first flow baffle plate can limit the flowing range of the cooling medium in the first direction, so that the cooling medium can be gathered near the first side wall. Compared with the prior art, the contact area of the cooling medium and the first side wall is increased due to the limiting effect of the first flow baffle, so that the cooling effect of the cooling medium on the thermal runaway battery cell is improved, and the spreading of the thermal runaway phenomenon is controlled.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of battery technology, and in particular to a battery pack and a vehicle. Background Technology

[0002] As the core component of the battery pack, the battery cell is used to perform charging and discharging to achieve power output. The battery cell generates a lot of heat during the charging and discharging process. If the heat is not absorbed or dissipated in time, the ambient temperature inside the battery pack will rise. If the battery cell operates in a high-temperature environment for a long time, thermal runaway may occur.

[0003] In order to provide timely cooling for thermal runaway cells, some existing technologies have begun to use heat-melting materials for the cold plates in battery packs. When a cell experiences thermal runaway, part of the cold plate will melt, causing the cooling medium inside the cold plate to flow out and directly contact the thermal runaway cell to cool it down.

[0004] However, due to the limited amount of cooling medium in the cold plate, the cooling medium flowing out of the cold plate flows at the bottom of the battery pack and may not be able to make sufficient contact with the surface of the thermal runaway cell. As a result, the cooling medium cannot effectively cool down the thermal runaway cell, which is not conducive to controlling the spread of thermal runaway. Utility Model Content

[0005] In view of this, this application provides a battery pack and vehicle to at least solve the problem that the cold plate in the prior art cannot provide effective cooling for thermal runaway cells.

[0006] To achieve the above objectives, the technical solution of this application is implemented as follows:

[0007] This application provides a battery pack, including: a cell assembly, a cold plate, and a first baffle plate; the cell assembly has a first sidewall disposed opposite to the cell assembly along a first direction, and the cold plate abuts against the first sidewall; the first baffle plate is disposed on at least one side of the cell assembly along the first direction, and the first baffle plate is used to limit the flow range of the cooling medium flowing out of the cold plate along the first direction.

[0008] Optionally, the battery pack further includes: a first sealing member; the first sealing member is disposed between the first sidewall and the first baffle, one side of the first sealing member abuts against the first sidewall and the other side abuts against the first baffle.

[0009] Optionally, there are at least two first sealing members, which are spaced apart along a second direction, wherein the second direction intersects the first direction; the at least two first sealing members divide the space between the first sidewall and the first baffle into at least two first cavities.

[0010] Optionally, the dimensions of each of the first cavities along the second direction range from 200 mm to 2500 mm.

[0011] Optionally, the cell assembly further has a second sidewall disposed opposite to the cell assembly along the second direction, and the battery pack further includes a second baffle plate; the second baffle plate is disposed on at least one side of the cell assembly along the second direction, and the second baffle plate is used to limit the flow range of the cooling medium along the second direction.

[0012] Optionally, the battery pack further includes: a second sealing member; the second sealing member is disposed between the second sidewall and the second baffle, one side of the second sealing member abuts against the second sidewall and the other side abuts against the second baffle.

[0013] Optionally, the first baffle is a longitudinal beam, and the second baffle is an expansion beam.

[0014] Optionally, the first sealing element includes a sealing part and two adsorption parts, the sealing part being disposed between the two adsorption parts; one of the two adsorption parts abuts against the first sidewall, and the other abuts against the first baffle.

[0015] Optionally, the adsorption part is foam, and the sealing part is sealant or thermoplastic strip.

[0016] This application also provides a vehicle including a battery pack as described in any of the preceding claims.

[0017] Compared with the prior art, the battery pack and vehicle described in this application have the following advantages:

[0018] The battery pack of this application includes a cell assembly, a cold plate, and a first baffle plate. The cold plate abuts against a first sidewall, and the first baffle plate is disposed on at least one side of the cell assembly in a first direction. The first baffle plate is used to limit the flow range of the cooling medium flowing out of the cold plate along the first direction. In the event of thermal runaway of some cells in the cell assembly, the cold plate melts, and the cooling medium inside it flows out. The first baffle plate can limit the flow range of the cooling medium along the first direction, which helps to collect the cooling medium near the first sidewall of the cell assembly. Compared with the prior art, the limiting effect of the first baffle plate increases the contact area between the cooling medium and the first sidewall, thereby helping to improve the cooling effect of the cooling medium on the thermally runaway cells, control the spread of thermal runaway, and prevent safety accidents such as fire and explosion of the battery pack.

[0019] The vehicle described in this application has the same or similar advantages as the existing technology and the aforementioned battery pack, which will not be elaborated here. Attached Figure Description

[0020] The accompanying drawings, which form part of this application, are used to provide a further understanding of this application. The illustrative embodiments and descriptions of this application are used to explain this application and do not constitute an undue limitation of this application. In the drawings:

[0021] Figure 1 This is a top view of a battery pack according to an embodiment of this application;

[0022] Figure 2 This is a simplified top view of a portion of a battery pack in an embodiment of this application;

[0023] Figure 3 This is a partial side view of a battery pack along a second direction in an embodiment of this application;

[0024] Figure 4 This is a partial side view of another battery pack along the second direction in an embodiment of this application.

[0025] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures:

[0026] 1-Cell assembly, 11-First sidewall, 12-Second sidewall, 2-Cold plate, 3-First baffle, 30-First cavity, 4-First sealing component, 41-Sealing part, 42-Adsorption part, 5-Second baffle, 50-Second cavity, 6-Second sealing component, X-First direction, Y-Second direction. Detailed Implementation

[0027] The technical solutions of the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of this application, not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of this application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0028] The terms "first," "second," etc., used in the specification and claims of this application are used to distinguish similar objects and not to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that such use of data can be interchanged where appropriate so that embodiments of this application can be implemented in orders other than those illustrated or described herein, and the objects distinguished by "first," "second," etc., are generally of the same class and the number of objects is not limited; for example, a first object can be one or more. Furthermore, in the specification and claims, "and / or" indicates at least one of the connected objects, and the character " / " generally indicates that the preceding and following objects are in an "or" relationship.

[0029] It should be understood that the phrase "some embodiments" throughout the specification means that a specific feature, structure, or characteristic related to an embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of this application. Therefore, "some embodiments" appearing throughout the specification does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. Furthermore, these specific features, structures, or characteristics can be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.

[0030] The following detailed description of a battery pack and vehicle provided in this application is illustrated with specific embodiments.

[0031] This application provides a battery pack. Figure 1 This is a top view of a battery pack according to an embodiment of this application. Figure 2 This is a simplified top view of a portion of a battery pack in an embodiment of this application, with reference to... Figure 1 and Figure 2 The battery pack includes: a cell assembly 1, a cold plate 2, and a first baffle plate 3; the cell assembly 1 has a first sidewall 11 disposed opposite to each other along a first direction X; the cold plate 2 abuts against the first sidewall 11; the first baffle plate 3 is disposed on at least one side of the cell assembly 1 along the first direction X, and the first baffle plate 3 is used to limit the flow range of the cooling medium flowing out of the cold plate 2 along the first direction X.

[0032] Specifically, refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, the battery cell assembly 1 has a first direction X and a second direction Y, the first direction X intersects the second direction Y, and the angle between the first direction X and the second direction Y can be any angle. Figure 1 and Figure 2 In the battery pack shown, the first direction X and the second direction Y are perpendicular to each other. "Perpendicular" includes not only absolute perpendicularity but also generally understood perpendicularity, such as when the angle between any two directions X and Y is between 89° and 91°. In this embodiment, the first direction X can be considered the width direction of the cell assembly 1, and the second direction Y can be considered the length direction of the cell assembly 1.

[0033] Cell pack 1 comprises multiple cells, each a cubic cell, arranged side-by-side along the first direction X and the second direction Y. These cells are connected in series and parallel to form cell pack 1, which is the core component of the battery pack, providing power through its charging and discharging. Cell pack 1 generates heat during charging and discharging. If this heat is not absorbed or dissipated in time, the ambient temperature inside the battery pack will rise, and the operating temperature of cell pack 1 will also increase. If cell pack 1 operates in a high-temperature environment for an extended period, some cells may experience thermal runaway. Thermally runaway cells may emit large amounts of high-temperature gas and smoke, generate flames, or even explode. If thermally runaway cells are not dealt with promptly and effectively, they can easily cause the battery pack to catch fire or explode, resulting in serious safety accidents.

[0034] Based on this, the battery pack in this embodiment also includes a cold plate 2, which is disposed on at least one side of the cell assembly 1 along the first direction X and abuts against the first sidewall 11 of the cell assembly 1. The cold plate 2 has a flow channel filled with a cooling medium, which can be pure water or an organic compound such as ethylene glycol. During the circulation of the cooling medium in the flow channel, it can carry away the heat generated by the operation of the cell assembly 1, thereby cooling the cell assembly 1.

[0035] The cold plate 2 can be disposed on one side of the cell assembly 1 along the first direction X, achieving cooling of the cell assembly 1 through single-sided cooling to control the overall weight of the battery pack. Alternatively, the cold plate 2 can be disposed on opposite sides of the cell assembly 1 along the first direction X, achieving cooling of the cell assembly 1 through double-sided cooling to improve the cooling effect. Furthermore, the cold plate 2 can abut against a portion of the surface of the first sidewall 11 or against the entire surface of the first sidewall 11. A larger contact area between the cold plate 2 and the first sidewall 11 results in better cooling of the cell assembly 1; a smaller contact area results in lighter weight and lower cost. The specific configuration can be flexibly set according to actual cooling requirements, and this embodiment does not impose any limitations on this.

[0036] The first baffle plate 3 is disposed on at least one side of the cell assembly 1 along the first direction X. The first baffle plate 3 is used to limit the flow range of the cooling medium flowing out of the cold plate 2 along the first direction X. In the event of thermal runaway of some cells in the cell assembly 1, the high-temperature gas and flames ejected by the thermal runaway cells may melt part of the structure of the cold plate 2, thereby causing the cooling medium in the cold plate 2 to flow out. The first baffle plate 3 can limit the flow range of the cooling medium along the first direction X, which helps to collect the cooling medium near the first side wall 11 of the cell assembly 1, making it difficult for the cooling medium to flow to other parts of the battery pack. Compared with the prior art, the limiting effect of the first baffle plate 3 increases the contact area between the cooling medium and the first side wall 11, thereby helping to improve the cooling effect of the cooling medium on the thermal runaway cells, control the spread of thermal runaway, and avoid safety accidents such as fire and explosion of the battery pack.

[0037] As the cooling medium continuously flows out of the cold plate 2, the amount of cooling medium collected between the first sidewall 11 and the first baffle 3 gradually increases, thereby increasing the contact area between the cooling medium and the first sidewall 11. This allows the cooling medium to achieve a more effective cooling effect on the thermal runaway battery cell. Of course, even when the amount of cooling medium flowing out of the cold plate 2 is limited, the restrictive effect of the first baffle 3 on the cooling medium also increases the contact area between the cooling medium and the first sidewall 11 compared to existing technologies, thus improving the cooling effect of the cooling medium on the thermal runaway battery cell.

[0038] Optionally, in some embodiments of this application, the battery pack further includes: a first sealing member 4; the first sealing member 4 is disposed between the first sidewall 11 and the first baffle plate 3, one side of the first sealing member 4 abuts against the first sidewall 11, and the other side abuts against the first baffle plate 3. The first sealing member 4 can be made of rubber-based materials (such as nitrile rubber, fluororubber, etc.), polymer-based materials (such as polytetrafluoroethylene, nylon, etc.), or some composite materials, ensuring that the first sealing member 4 has good sealing performance. The first sealing member 4 can block the space between the first sidewall 11 and the first baffle plate 3. In the event of thermal runaway of the battery cell and leakage of the cooling medium in the cold plate 2, the first sealing member 4 can limit the flow range of the cooling medium between the first sidewall 11 and the first baffle plate 3 along the second direction Y, thereby helping to concentrate the cooling medium near the thermally runaway battery cell, improving the cooling effect of the cooling medium on the thermally runaway battery cell, and controlling the spread of thermal runaway.

[0039] Optionally, refer to Figure 2As shown in some embodiments of this application, there are at least two first sealing members 4, which are spaced apart along the second direction Y. These two first sealing members 4 divide the space between the first sidewall 11 and the first baffle plate 3 into at least two first cavities 30. When a cell experiences thermal runaway and the cooling medium in the cold plate 2 flows out, the cooling medium will first flow into the first cavity 30 closest to the thermally runaway cell. The first cavity 30 restricts the flow of the cooling medium. As the cooling medium continues to flow out, the amount of cooling medium in each first cavity 30 may differ. The first cavity 30 closer to the thermally runaway cell will accumulate more cooling medium, thus improving the cooling effect on the thermally runaway cell. The spacing between adjacent first sealing members 4 can be the same or different, and can be set according to the thermal runaway simulation conditions of different cell groups 1. In addition, if the size of the battery cell assembly 1 along the second direction Y is large, the number of the first sealing member 4 can be set to be larger; if the size of the battery cell assembly 1 along the second direction Y is small, the number of the first sealing member 4 can be set to be smaller. The specific number can be flexibly set according to actual needs.

[0040] Optionally, refer to Figure 2 As shown, in some embodiments of this application, the size of each first cavity 30 along the second direction Y ranges from 200mm to 2500mm. Specifically, tests have shown that approximately 2L to 3L of cooling medium can flow out when the cold plate 2 is melted. Therefore, setting the size of each first cavity 30 along the second direction Y to range from 200mm to 2500mm ensures sufficient contact area between the cooling medium and the first sidewall 11. If the amount of cooling medium flowing out of the cold plate 2 is large, the cooling medium can submerge the top wall of the cell assembly 1, thereby achieving a better cooling effect.

[0041] Optionally, refer to Figure 2 As shown, in some embodiments of this application, the cell pack 1 further has a second sidewall 12 disposed opposite to each other along the second direction Y, and the battery pack further includes a second baffle 5, which is disposed on at least one side of the cell pack 1 along the second direction Y, and the second baffle 5 is used to limit the flow range of the cooling medium along the second direction Y.

[0042] Specifically, in practical applications, due to the randomness of the melting location of the cold plate 2, some cooling medium may flow into the side where the second sidewall 12 of the cell assembly 1 is located. If the cooling medium continues to flow away from the cell assembly 1, it may flow to the location of some control modules within the battery pack, increasing the risk of fire, explosion, and other safety accidents. Therefore, in this embodiment, a second baffle 5 is also provided on the side where the second sidewall 12 of the cell assembly 1 is located. The second baffle 5 can limit the flow range of the cooling medium along the second direction Y, thereby reducing the probability of the cooling medium flowing to the control modules and helping to improve the safety management of the battery pack. In addition, under the limiting effect of the second baffle 5, the cooling medium can fully contact the second sidewall 12 of the cell assembly 1, effectively cooling the second sidewall 12 and further controlling the spread of thermal runaway.

[0043] Optionally, refer to Figure 2 As shown, in some embodiments of this application, the battery pack further includes a second sealing member 6, which is disposed between the second sidewall 12 and the second baffle plate 5. One side of the second sealing member 6 abuts against the second sidewall 12, and the other side abuts against the second baffle plate 5. The second sealing member 6 can also be made of rubber-based materials (such as nitrile rubber, fluororubber, etc.), polymer-based materials (such as polytetrafluoroethylene, nylon, etc.), or some composite materials, as long as the second sealing member 6 has good sealing performance. The second sealing member 6 can block the space between the second sidewall 12 and the second baffle plate 5. In the event of thermal runaway of the battery cell and leakage of the cooling medium in the cold plate 2, the second sealing member 6 can limit the flow range of the cooling medium along the first direction X between the second sidewall 12 and the second baffle plate 5, thereby helping to concentrate the cooling medium near the second sidewall 12, improving the cooling effect of the cooling medium on the thermally runaway battery cell, and controlling the spread of thermal runaway.

[0044] It should be noted that although the cold plate 2 is located on the same side as the first sidewall 11, when the cooling medium in the cold plate 2 flows out, due to the fluidity of the liquid, the cooling medium may flow between the large surfaces of two adjacent cells, or it may flow along the bottom plate of the battery pack between the second sidewall 12 and the second baffle 5. In addition, the number of second sealing members 6 can also be two or more, and the two or more second sealing members 6 are arranged at intervals along the first direction X to divide the area between the second sidewall 12 and the second baffle 5 into two or more second cavities 50. The second cavities 50 can better restrict the cooling medium and reduce the probability of cooling medium leakage.

[0045] Optionally, Figure 3 and Figure 4 These are partial side views of a battery pack along the second direction Y in an embodiment of this application, with reference to... Figure 3 and Figure 4In some embodiments of this application, the first sealing member 4 includes a sealing part 41 and two adsorption parts 42, with the sealing part 41 disposed between the two adsorption parts 42; one of the two adsorption parts 42 abuts against the first sidewall 11, and the other abuts against the first baffle plate 3. Specifically, the adsorption part 42 is mainly made of a material with adsorption capacity, such as polystyrene, polypropylene, polyurethane, etc. In the embodiments of this application, the adsorption part 42 can be made of foam, which, based on its porous characteristics, can adsorb a large amount of cooling medium and allow the cooling medium to gradually diffuse to the entire surface of the foam. The sealing part 41 is mainly made of a material with good sealing performance. In the embodiments of this application, the sealing part 41 can be made of sealant, such as potting compound, butyl sealant, polymer sealant, etc., or made of thermoplastic strips, such as polycarbonate (PC) strips, polyethylene (PE) strips, polyamide (PA) strips, etc. Similarly, the second sealing member 6 can also be composed of a sealing part and two adsorption parts, with the adsorption part of the second sealing member 6 closely attached to the second sidewall 12 and the second baffle plate 5. Furthermore, in some embodiments of this application, the thickness of the sealing portion 41 is not less than 0.5 mm to ensure the sealing performance of the first sealing member 4 and the second sealing member 6.

[0046] Optionally, in some embodiments of this application, the first baffle 3 is a longitudinal beam, and the second baffle 5 is an expansion beam. The longitudinal beam is part of the battery pack housing structure, thus the first baffle 3 reuses part of the battery pack housing structure, which helps improve the structural utilization rate of the battery pack, reduce the overall volume of the battery pack, and facilitates the miniaturization and lightweight design of the battery pack. The expansion beam is a beam that constrains the cell assembly 1. During the expansion process of the cell assembly 1, it can effectively constrain the cell assembly 1 to improve the stability of the cell assembly 1 within the battery pack. Therefore, the second baffle 5 reuses the expansion beam, which can further improve the structural utilization rate of the battery pack.

[0047] This application also provides a vehicle, which can be a pure electric vehicle or a hybrid vehicle. The vehicle includes a battery pack, which is the main power component of the vehicle. The performance of the battery pack determines the vehicle's range, driving performance, safety performance, etc. The battery pack adopts the battery pack described in any of the foregoing embodiments. In the event of thermal runaway of the battery pack, the first baffle 3 inside the battery pack can restrict the cooling medium, so that the cooling medium can fully contact the first sidewall 11 of the cell group 1, thereby effectively controlling the spread of thermal runaway and avoiding safety accidents such as fire and explosion of the battery pack.

[0048] Finally, it should be noted that in this document, relational terms such as "first" and "second" are used only to distinguish one entity or operation from another, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Furthermore, the terms "comprising," "including," or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or terminal device that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such a process, method, article, or terminal device. Without further limitations, an element defined by the phrase "comprising one..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article, or terminal device that includes said element.

[0049] The above description is merely a preferred embodiment of this application and is not intended to limit this application. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of this application should be included within the protection scope of this application.

Claims

1. A battery pack, characterized in that, include: Battery cell assembly (1), cold plate (2) and first baffle plate (3); The battery cell assembly (1) has a first sidewall (11) disposed opposite to each other along a first direction (X), and the cold plate (2) abuts against the first sidewall (11); The first baffle (3) is disposed on at least one side of the battery cell assembly (1) along the first direction (X), and the first baffle (3) is used to limit the flow range of the cooling medium flowing out of the cold plate (2) along the first direction (X).

2. The battery pack according to claim 1, characterized in that, The battery pack also includes: a first sealing element (4); The first sealing member (4) is disposed between the first side wall (11) and the first baffle (3). One side of the first sealing member (4) abuts against the first side wall (11), and the other side abuts against the first baffle (3).

3. The battery pack according to claim 2, characterized in that, There are at least two first sealing elements (4), and at least two first sealing elements (4) are spaced apart along the second direction (Y), wherein the second direction (Y) intersects with the first direction (X); At least two of the first sealing elements (4) separate the first sidewall (11) and the first baffle (3) into at least two first cavities (30).

4. The battery pack according to claim 3, characterized in that, Each of the first cavities (30) has a size range of 200 mm to 2500 mm along the second direction (Y).

5. The battery pack according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, The battery pack (1) also has a second sidewall (12) disposed opposite to each other along the second direction (Y), and the battery pack further includes: a second baffle (5); The second baffle (5) is disposed on at least one side of the battery cell assembly (1) along the second direction (Y), and the second baffle (5) is used to limit the flow range of the cooling medium along the second direction (Y).

6. The battery pack according to claim 5, characterized in that, The battery pack also includes: a second sealing element (6); The second sealing member (6) is disposed between the second side wall (12) and the second baffle (5). One side of the second sealing member (6) abuts against the second side wall (12), and the other side abuts against the second baffle (5).

7. The battery pack according to claim 5, characterized in that, The first baffle (3) is a longitudinal beam, and the second baffle (5) is an expansion beam.

8. The battery pack according to any one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that, The first sealing component (4) includes a sealing part (41) and two adsorption parts (42), wherein the sealing part (41) is disposed between the two adsorption parts (42); One of the two adsorption sections (42) abuts against the first sidewall (11), and the other abuts against the first baffle (3).

9. The battery pack according to claim 8, characterized in that, The adsorption part (42) is foam, and the sealing part (41) is sealant or thermoplastic strip.

10. A vehicle, characterized in that, Includes the battery pack as described in any one of claims 1 to 9.

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