Interposed Battery Cooling Member for Heat and Swelling Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
High-performance secondary batteries generate heat during operation, leading to performance degradation and safety issues, and swelling problems if not properly managed.
Innovation Solution
A battery assembly with a cooling member interposed between battery cells, featuring a coolant flow path, inlet, and outlet, designed to efficiently cool the cells and manage swelling through a gas pocket and elastic material.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If high-performance secondary batteries are used to increase energy density, then battery performance is improved, but heat generation increases causing safety issues and performance degradation
Solution Approach 1:
A cooling member is introduced as an intermediary component between battery cells to manage heat. The cooling member includes a coolant flow path that allows coolant to circulate, actively removing heat from the battery cells and preventing thermal accumulation that would otherwise lead to safety issues and performance degradation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs hydraulic cooling by circulating coolant through channels formed between battery cells. The coolant flow paths are configured to efficiently remove heat generated during battery operation, using fluid dynamics to transfer thermal energy away from the battery cells and maintain safe operating temperatures.
2Reliability
If cooling members are added to manage heat, then thermal safety is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling member serves multiple functions simultaneously: it cools battery cells through coolant circulation, provides structural support between cells, and manages swelling through its elastic material composition. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate components, thereby limiting the increase in overall device complexity while maintaining thermal safety.
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling member is constructed from elastic material that can deform to accommodate battery swelling. This flexible structure provides thermal management through coolant flow paths while simultaneously adapting to volume changes in battery cells, eliminating the need for rigid, complex cooling structures and swelling management mechanisms.
3Temperature
If cooling members with coolant flow paths are inserted between battery cells, then cooling efficiency is improved, but space utilization is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling member is segmented into multiple cooling regions with separate coolant flow paths that can be independently configured. This segmentation allows efficient heat removal from different battery cell surfaces while optimizing the use of available space between cells, as each segment can be tailored to the local thermal management needs.
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling member utilizes the vertical dimension between battery cells by forming coolant flow paths that extend between cell surfaces. This three-dimensional cooling approach maximizes heat transfer surface area within the limited space available, improving cooling efficiency without proportionally increasing the volume occupied by the cooling system.
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
Minimizes performance degradation and safety issues by effectively cooling battery cells, while preventing swelling, utilizing space efficiently.
Implementation Method 1
the coolant flowing through the coolant flow path may absorb heat generated by at least a portion of the multiple battery cells
Implementation Method 2
the cooling member may include an elastic material
Data Source
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AI summary
The present application may provide a battery assembly comprising a plurality of battery cells and a cooling member interposed between the plurality of battery cells, wherein the cooling member comprises: a main body portion including a coolant flow path provided to allow a coolant to flow therein; an inlet portion communicating with the coolant flow path and provided to introduce the coolant; and an outlet portion communicating with the coolant flow path and provided to discharge the coolant, and the inlet portion and the outlet portion extend from one side of the main body portion corresponding to the venting direction of the plurality of battery cells.