Battery Cooling System with Downstream Ion Exchanger
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Solution Overview
Problem
Battery cooling systems for vehicles with high-output batteries face challenges in maintaining cooling performance while preventing size increase and ensuring safety, particularly due to thermal degradation of insulating cooling water, which affects ion exchange efficiency and durability.
Innovation Solution
A battery cooling system design incorporating a cooling water circulation circuit with a first heat exchanger for air cooling, a second heat exchanger for low-pressure refrigerant cooling, and an ion exchanger for impurity removal, where the ion exchanger is positioned downstream of the second heat exchanger, allowing for efficient cooling and improved ion exchange efficiency by sequencing heat exchange and ion removal based on temperature.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If the cooling system is designed to cover maximum heat generation amount, then cooling performance is improved, but system size increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a variable capacity compression mechanism where the compressor can dynamically adjust its compression capacity based on actual cooling demand. This allows the system to maintain full cooling performance when needed while operating at reduced capacity during normal conditions, effectively managing thermal loads without requiring oversized cooling components that would increase system size.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes operational parameters by adjusting the compression ratio and refrigerant flow rates dynamically. By varying these parameters according to battery temperature and heat generation levels, the system optimizes cooling efficiency across different operating conditions, achieving effective cooling without the need for a permanently oversized system design.
2Reliability
If insulating LLC is used to prevent cooling water leakage, then safety is improved, but insulating performance deteriorates due to thermal degradation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates an ion exchanger that periodically removes degraded ions from the cooling water circulation system. This recovery process restores the insulating properties of the cooling water, allowing the system to maintain both safety (through continued use of insulating LLC) and insulating performance (by removing thermal degradation products that accumulate over time).
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements monitoring of cooling water quality and thermal performance, with the ion exchanger operation controlled based on accumulated thermal degradation levels. This feedback mechanism ensures that insulating performance is maintained by triggering ion removal operations when degradation thresholds are reached, balancing safety requirements with thermal efficiency.
3Reliability
If ion exchanger is placed upstream of heat exchangers, then ion removal efficiency is improved, but cooling efficiency decreases due to temperature
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary cooling of the cooling water before it reaches the ion exchanger by positioning the heat exchanger upstream in the circulation loop. This preliminary action reduces the temperature of the cooling water entering the ion exchanger, thereby improving ion exchange efficiency without requiring the ion exchanger to be the first component in the loop.
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling water circulation system is segmented into distinct functional zones: a cooling zone with heat exchangers that lowers water temperature, and an ion treatment zone with the ion exchanger that removes degraded ions. This segmentation allows each component to operate in its optimal temperature range, with the heat exchanger providing cooled water to the ion exchanger at appropriate temperatures for efficient ion removal.
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 configuration enhances cooling performance, maintains insulating performance, and improves system safety by efficiently cooling the battery while preventing excessive size growth, thus addressing the issues of thermal degradation and ion exchange efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
a first heat exchanger for exchanging heat between air and the cooling water
Implementation Method 2
a second heat exchanger for exchanging heat between low-pressure refrigerant of a refrigeration cycle circuit and the cooling water
Implementation Method 3
an ion exchanger for removing impurity ions contained in the cooling water
Data Source
AI summary
A battery cooling system includes a cooling water circulation circuit for circulating cooling water for cooling the battery, a first heat exchanger for exchanging heat between air and cooling water, a second heat exchanger for exchanging heat between the low-pressure refrigerant of the refrigeration cycle circuit and cooling water, and an ion exchanger for removing impurity ions contained in the cooling water. The first heat exchanger and the second heat exchanger are arranged in series in the cooling water circulation circuit. The ion exchanger is disposed on the downstream side of the second heat exchanger in the cooling water circulation circuit.