A side liquid cooling device for equalizing battery pack temperature

Abstract

This utility model relates to the field of battery technology, and in particular to a side liquid cooling device for equalizing the temperature of a battery pack. It includes an inlet pipe, an outlet pipe, a main liquid cooling plate, and several secondary liquid cooling plates. Each of the main liquid cooling plate and the secondary liquid cooling plates has multiple flow channels. The secondary liquid cooling plates are arranged at intervals along the thickness direction of the main liquid cooling plate on both sides of the main liquid cooling plate. The flow channel size of the main liquid cooling plate is larger than that of the secondary liquid cooling plates. The inlet pipe has an inlet, and the outlet pipe has an outlet. Both the inlet and outlet are connected to the flow channels of the main liquid cooling plate and the secondary liquid cooling plates. This utility model can improve heat exchange efficiency, reduce cell temperature differences, and increase the overall service life of the battery pack.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the field of battery technology, specifically to a side liquid cooling device for equalizing the temperature of a battery pack. Background Technology

[0002] With the development of the new energy vehicle industry, the market share of electric vehicles is increasing. As the main power source for electric vehicles, the safety, energy density, and volumetric packing ratio of power batteries are receiving increasing attention from users. The temperature of the battery pack has a significant impact on its overall performance, primarily affecting electrical performance, cell lifespan, and thermal runaway safety. In the application of power batteries in electric vehicles, it is generally necessary to determine the optimal operating range of the battery and comprehensively evaluate how to ensure the longest possible battery lifespan while achieving optimal performance. Research indicates that the optimal operating temperature range for batteries is 15℃-35℃. Current technical solutions mainly involve adding liquid cooling plates between the bottom of the battery pack housing and the battery modules to dissipate heat from the cells. The various liquid cooling plates within the housing are connected in series and parallel via water pipes, achieving cell cooling through heat exchange between the liquid cooling plates and the bottom or sides of the cells. However, the concentrated distribution of heat sources in the battery pack results in a high temperature in the center and a low temperature around the edges. This uneven temperature distribution leads to performance differences between individual cells, accelerating cell performance degradation. Based on the "weakest link" effect, this ultimately affects the lifespan of the battery pack. Utility Model Content

[0003] To address the shortcomings of existing technologies, the purpose of this invention is to provide a side liquid cooling device for battery pack temperature uniformity, which can achieve differentiated liquid cooling areas, reduce cell temperature differences, and improve the overall service life of the battery pack.

[0004] To achieve the above objectives, this utility model provides the following technical solution: a side liquid cooling device for equalizing battery pack temperature, comprising an inlet pipe, an outlet pipe, a main liquid cooling plate, and a plurality of secondary liquid cooling plates, wherein the main liquid cooling plate and the plurality of secondary liquid cooling plates are provided with multiple flow channels inside; the plurality of secondary liquid cooling plates are arranged at intervals on both sides of the main liquid cooling plate along the thickness direction of the main liquid cooling plate; the flow channel size of the main liquid cooling plate is larger than the flow channel size of the secondary liquid cooling plates; the inlet pipe is provided with an inlet, and the outlet pipe is provided with an outlet; both the inlet and the outlet are connected to the flow channels of the main liquid cooling plate and the flow channels of the secondary liquid cooling plates.

[0005] Preferably, among the secondary liquid cooling plates located on the same side of the main liquid cooling plate, the flow channel size of the secondary liquid cooling plate closer to the main liquid cooling plate is larger than the flow channel size of the secondary liquid cooling plate farther away from the main liquid cooling plate.

[0006] Preferably, the positions of the water inlet and outlet correspond to the positions of the main liquid cooling plate.

[0007] Preferably, the number of secondary liquid cooling plates located on one side of the main liquid cooling plate is the same as the number of secondary liquid cooling plates located on the other side of the main liquid cooling plate.

[0008] Preferably, a front manifold and a rear manifold are respectively provided at both ends of the main liquid cooling plate along its length and at both ends of the secondary liquid cooling plate along its length; the water inlet and the water outlet are both connected to the front manifold.

[0009] Preferably, the front manifold has an upper cavity and a lower cavity inside; both the main liquid cooling plate and the secondary liquid cooling plate have partitions inside; the upper cavity is connected to the water inlet and the flow channel on the upper side of the partition; the lower cavity is connected to the water outlet and the flow channel on the lower side of the partition.

[0010] Preferably, each front manifold is equipped with a water nozzle that matches the inlet and outlet pipes.

[0011] Preferably, it also includes several grounding supports; the grounding supports are arranged corresponding to the front current collector; the grounding supports are located at the lower end of the front current collector.

[0012] Preferably, the inlet pipe and outlet pipe are made of plastic.

[0013] Preferably, the main liquid cooling plate, the secondary liquid cooling plate, the front manifold, and the rear manifold are all made of metal.

[0014] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of this utility model are: by designing the gradient flow resistance of the liquid cooling plate cavity pipeline and arranging the inlet and outlet positions centrally, the flow resistance of the liquid cooling pipe in the middle of the battery pack is minimized, and the flow resistance increases towards the outer side. Ultimately, the flow rate of the coolant is controlled to conform to the temperature distribution law of the battery pack, so that the flow rate is high in areas with high temperature and low in areas with low temperature, thereby improving the heat exchange efficiency in the high temperature zone of the battery, reducing the temperature difference of the cells, and improving the overall service life of the battery pack. Attached Figure Description

[0015] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of the liquid cooling device of this utility model;

[0016] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the liquid cooling device and battery pack of this utility model;

[0017] Figure 3 For the present utility model Figure 1 Sectional view along the middle AA direction;

[0018] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the front current collector assembly structure of this utility model;

[0019] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the front flow collection section of this utility model.

[0020] In the diagram: 1 Liquid cooling device, 11 Liquid cooling plate, 12 Front manifold assembly, 13 Rear manifold, 14 Inlet pipe, 15 Outlet pipe, 111 Main liquid cooling plate, 112 Secondary liquid cooling plate, 113 External liquid cooling plate, 121 Front manifold, 122 Partition, 123 Upper cavity, 124 Lower cavity, 125 Upper water nozzle, 126 Lower water nozzle, 127 Grounding bracket, 2 Battery module, 3 Lower housing. Detailed Implementation

[0021] The specific embodiments of this utility model are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings, so that those skilled in the art can more clearly understand how to practice this utility model. Although this utility model has been described in conjunction with its preferred embodiments, these embodiments are merely illustrative and not intended to limit the scope of this utility model.

[0022] This liquid cooling device is mainly used to improve the heat exchange efficiency of the battery pack to enhance its performance. The battery pack includes an upper housing (not shown in the figure), a liquid cooling device 1, four battery modules 2, and a lower housing 3. The liquid cooling device 1 and the four battery modules are located between the upper and lower housings. The liquid cooling device includes five liquid cooling plates 11, which are arranged alternately with the four battery modules. Each battery module 2 has thirteen battery cells arranged along the length of the liquid cooling plate. The two sides of each battery cell along the length of the liquid cooling plate 11 are thermally connected to two adjacent liquid cooling plates 11, using thermally conductive adhesive for bonding. The liquid cooling plate 11 is assembled on the side of the module mainly by relying on the adhesive force of the adhesive. Because the thermally conductive adhesive has excellent thermal conductivity, it can increase the heat exchange efficiency between the cell and the liquid cooling plate and remove as much heat as possible. In other embodiments, the number of liquid cooling plates is always greater than the number of battery modules. The liquid cooling device 1 is fixed on the lower housing, mainly for equipotential grounding, and secondly to provide a certain fastening effect. The liquid cooling device 1 can effectively balance the temperature of the battery modules caused by the concentrated distribution of heat sources in the battery modules 2, reduce the difference in battery performance, and extend the service life of the battery pack.

[0023] In the following embodiments, for ease of understanding, the thickness direction of the liquid cooling plate 11 is taken as the X direction, the length direction of the liquid cooling plate 11 is taken as the Y direction, and the width direction of the liquid cooling plate 11 is taken as the Z direction.

[0024] See Figure 1-5 In one embodiment of the present invention, a side liquid cooling device for equalizing battery pack temperature includes: five liquid cooling components, an inlet pipe 14 and an outlet pipe 15. The five liquid cooling components are all connected to the inlet pipe 14 and the outlet pipe 15, and the five liquid cooling components are arranged at intervals along the X direction.

[0025] The liquid cooling component includes a liquid cooling plate 11, a front manifold assembly 12, and a rear manifold 13. The liquid cooling plate 11 extends along the Y direction, and the front manifold assembly 12 and the rear manifold 13 are respectively disposed at both ends of the liquid cooling plate 11 in the Y direction. In this embodiment, the liquid cooling plate 11 has a harmonica tube structure. Several flow channels are distributed inside the liquid cooling plate 11 along the Z direction and extend along the Y direction. At the same time, a partition is provided inside the liquid cooling plate 11 to divide the several flow channels into an upper flow channel group and a lower flow channel group. The liquid cooling plate 11 and the rear manifold 13 are fixedly connected by welding. The rear manifold 13 is a structure with closed ends and an internal cavity. The flow channels inside the liquid cooling plate 11 are all connected to the cavity.

[0026] The front current collector assembly 12 includes a front current collector 121, a partition 122, an upper water inlet 125, a lower water inlet 126, and a grounding bracket 127. The front current collector 121 has the same structure as the rear current collector 13. The partition 122 is located inside the front current collector 121 and divides the cavity of the front current collector 121 into an upper cavity 123 and a lower cavity 124. The upper water inlet 125, the lower water inlet 126, and the grounding bracket 127 are all fixedly mounted on the front current collector 121. The upper water inlet 125 is connected to the upper cavity 123, and the lower water inlet 126 is connected to the lower cavity 124. The grounding bracket 127 is located at the lower end of the front current collector 121. After assembly, the grounding bracket 127 is fixed to the lower housing 3 by bolts. As mentioned above, the liquid cooling component and the battery module are mainly fixed by adhesive bonding. The connection between the grounding bracket 127 and the lower housing 3 is for equipotential grounding and secondly, to provide a certain fastening effect.

[0027] The front manifold 121 is connected and fixed to the liquid cooling plate 11 by welding. At the same time, the upper cavity 123 is connected to the upper flow channel group, and the lower cavity 124 is connected to the lower flow channel group.

[0028] Furthermore, in order to achieve unified allocation, the inlet pipe 14 is fixedly connected to and communicates with five upper water nozzles 125, and the outlet pipe 15 is fixedly connected to and communicates with five lower water nozzles 126. The fixed connection method here is an interference fit to ensure the sealing of this liquid cooling device. The inlet pipe 14 is provided with an inlet, and the outlet pipe 15 is provided with an outlet. It can be understood that the inlet, upper cavity 123, upper flow channel group, rear manifold 13, lower flow channel group, lower cavity 124 and outlet are connected in series. After the refrigerant, such as coolant or cooling gas, is injected through the inlet, it can be discharged through the outlet. Using this circulation process, the refrigerant can complete the heat exchange with the liquid cooling plate 11.

[0029] Furthermore, to achieve gradient heat exchange, the five liquid cooling plates 11 include a main liquid cooling plate 111, two secondary liquid cooling plates 112, and two outer liquid cooling plates 113. The main liquid cooling plate 111 is centrally located, the two secondary liquid cooling plates 112 are located on both sides of the main liquid cooling plate 111, and the two outer liquid cooling plates 113 are located on the outer sides of the two secondary liquid cooling plates 112. In addition, the flow channel size inside the main liquid cooling plate 111 is the largest, the flow channel size of the secondary liquid cooling plate 112 is the second largest, and the flow channel size of the outer liquid cooling plate 113 is the smallest. To meet the flow requirements, the inlet and outlet are both centrally located. That is, the coolant flowing in through the inlet first flows into the upper flow channel group of the main liquid cooling plate 111, then into the upper flow channel group of the secondary liquid cooling plate 112, and finally into the upper flow channel group of the outer liquid cooling plate 113.

[0030] In this embodiment, it can be understood through welding that the liquid cooling plate 11, the front manifold 121 and the rear manifold 13 are all made of metal, including but not limited to aluminum, aluminum alloy, steel, copper and other materials.

[0031] In one embodiment, the water inlet 125, water outlet 126, water inlet pipe 14, and water outlet pipe 15 may be made of metal or plastic.

[0032] This technical solution employs a gradient flow resistance design for the liquid cooling plate cavity piping, while centrally arranging the inlet and outlet positions. This minimizes the flow resistance in the middle of the battery pack's liquid cooling pipes, increasing it towards the outer edges. Ultimately, this controls the coolant flow rate to conform to the battery pack's temperature distribution pattern, resulting in higher flow rates in areas of higher temperature and lower flow rates in areas of lower temperature. This reduces temperature differences between battery cells and improves the overall lifespan of the battery pack.

[0033] Although embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes, modifications, substitutions and alterations can be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the present invention, the scope of which is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A side liquid cooling device for equalizing the temperature of a battery pack, characterized in that: It includes an inlet pipe (14), an outlet pipe (15), a main liquid cooling plate, and several secondary liquid cooling plates. The main liquid cooling plate and several secondary liquid cooling plates are provided with multiple flow channels inside. The several secondary liquid cooling plates are arranged at intervals on both sides of the main liquid cooling plate along the thickness direction of the main liquid cooling plate. The flow channel size of the main liquid cooling plate is larger than that of the secondary liquid cooling plate. The inlet pipe (14) is provided with an inlet, and the outlet pipe (15) is provided with an outlet. The inlet and outlet are connected to the flow channels of the main liquid cooling plate and the flow channels of the secondary liquid cooling plates.

2. The side liquid cooling device for uniform battery pack temperature according to claim 1, characterized in that: Among the several secondary liquid cooling plates located on the same side of the main liquid cooling plate, the flow channel size of the secondary liquid cooling plate closer to the main liquid cooling plate is larger than the flow channel size of the secondary liquid cooling plate farther away from the main liquid cooling plate.

3. The side liquid cooling device for equalizing battery pack temperature according to claim 1, characterized in that: The positions of the water inlet and outlet correspond to the positions of the main liquid cooling plate.

4. The side liquid cooling device for equalizing battery pack temperature according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The number of secondary liquid cooling plates located on one side of the main liquid cooling plate is the same as the number of secondary liquid cooling plates located on the other side of the main liquid cooling plate.

5. The side liquid cooling device for equalizing battery pack temperature according to claim 1, characterized in that: The main liquid cooling plate has a front manifold and a rear manifold at both ends along its length, and the secondary liquid cooling plate has a rear manifold at both ends along its length, respectively; the inlet and outlet are both connected to the front manifold.

6. The side liquid cooling device for equalizing battery pack temperature according to claim 5, characterized in that: The front manifold has an upper cavity and a lower cavity inside; both the main liquid cooling plate and the secondary liquid cooling plate have partitions inside; the upper cavity is connected to the water inlet and the flow channel on the upper side of the partition; the lower cavity is connected to the water outlet and the flow channel on the lower side of the partition.

7. The side liquid cooling device for equalizing battery pack temperature according to claim 5, characterized in that: Each front manifold is equipped with a water nozzle that matches the inlet pipe (14) and the outlet pipe (15).

8. The side liquid cooling device for equalizing battery pack temperature according to claim 5, characterized in that: It also includes several grounding supports; the grounding supports are set in correspondence with the front current collector; the grounding supports are located at the lower end of the front current collector.

9. The side liquid cooling device for equalizing battery pack temperature according to claim 1, characterized in that: The inlet pipe (14) and outlet pipe (15) are made of plastic.

10. The side liquid cooling device for equalizing battery pack temperature according to claim 5, characterized in that: The main liquid cooling plate, secondary liquid cooling plate, front manifold, and rear manifold are all made of metal.

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