Battery Coolant Valve Control for Uniform Cold Plate Cooling
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Solution Overview
Problem
In electric vehicle battery packs, existing cooling systems fail to maintain uniform temperature across multiple cold plates, leading to inefficient cooling and increased temperature differences, as coolant often becomes too warm by the time it reaches the last plates without being refreshed through a chiller.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating valves that control coolant flow within the battery pack's main line and cooling channels, allowing coolant to bypass certain cold plates and prioritize cooling of others, ensuring fresh coolant reaches all plates efficiently, thereby minimizing temperature differences.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If coolant flows through all cold plates in sequence without bypass capability, then the cooling system structure is simple, but the temperature difference between cold plates increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by making the cooling system adaptable through controllable valves that can dynamically adjust coolant flow distribution. The system transitions from a static, fixed flow path to a dynamic, controllable flow distribution mechanism, allowing real-time optimization of cooling based on battery thermal conditions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements local quality by enabling different cold plates to receive coolant based on their specific thermal needs. The controllable valves allow selective cooling of individual cold plates or groups, creating localized cooling zones that match the non-uniform thermal distribution in the battery pack.
2Productivity
If coolant is recirculated through multiple cold plates without being refreshed, then the cooling system operates continuously, but the cooling efficiency decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies periodic action by implementing cyclic coolant refresh operations through controllable valves. The system periodically directs coolant through different cold plates in a controlled sequence, ensuring that coolant is refreshed at appropriate intervals rather than continuously circulating through all plates, thereby maintaining cooling efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The dynamic valve control enables the system to adapt coolant circulation patterns based on real-time thermal conditions, optimizing the balance between continuous cooling operation and periodic coolant refreshment to maintain high cooling efficiency.
3Temperature
If valves are added to control coolant flow to each cold plate, then temperature uniformity improves, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements local quality by placing controllable valves at strategic locations to enable selective cooling of specific cold plates. This localized control approach achieves temperature uniformity across the battery pack by addressing thermal imbalances at the source rather than requiring complex system-wide control.
Solution Approach 2:
The dynamic valve control system adapts coolant distribution based on real-time thermal conditions, achieving temperature uniformity through intelligent, condition-based flow regulation rather than fixed, complex mechanical structures.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution effectively reduces temperature differences between cold plates in the battery pack by ensuring that only one or more cold plates receive coolant in each cycle, maintaining optimal cooling without recirculating warm coolant, thus enhancing the overall cooling efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
The main line can fluidly couple with at least one cold plate by a cooling channel
Implementation Method 2
at least one main line for a coolant to flow through
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus can include one or more valves to couple with a thermal line of a battery pack. The apparatus can include one or more coolant channels to couple with one or more thermal components of the battery pack. The one or more valves can modify coolant flow from the thermal line to the one or more coolant channels.