Battery Pack Partition Wall with Sealed Air Pockets
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing battery packs face challenges in efficiently managing thermal and electrical interference between battery cells, leading to reduced performance and lifespan, particularly in high-power applications like electric vehicles.
Innovation Solution
A battery pack design featuring a partition wall with concave air pockets that hermetically accommodate air layers, isolating them from external flow and contact with battery cell surfaces, thereby suppressing thermal and electrical interference between adjacent cells.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If battery cells are arranged closely to increase output voltage or current, then productivity and power density are improved, but thermal interference and electrical interference between adjacent cells increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a partition wall as an intermediary structure between adjacent battery cells. This partition wall includes air pockets that create an air layer, serving as a thermal and electrical insulator. The air layer acts as a mediator that reduces heat transfer and electrical interference between cells while allowing the cells to be arranged closely for high power density.
Solution Approach 2:
The partition wall is designed with varying thickness - a thin wall portion and a thick wall portion - to optimize both thermal insulation and structural integrity. The air pockets are strategically positioned at specific locations between battery cells, providing localized thermal management where it is most needed while maintaining overall pack density.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If partition wall thickness is increased to improve thermal insulation, then thermal interference is reduced, but device complexity and space occupation increase
Solution Approach 1:
The partition wall employs different thicknesses at different locations - a thin wall portion and a thick wall portion - to provide optimized thermal insulation where needed while minimizing overall structure complexity and space occupation.
Solution Approach 2:
The partition wall incorporates air pockets that create a porous structure. Air is a poor conductor of heat, so this porous design enhances thermal insulation effectiveness without requiring a uniformly thick partition wall, thereby reducing overall device complexity.
3Temperature
If air layer is allowed to flow freely for heat dissipation, then cooling efficiency is improved, but electrical interference and thermal runaway risk increase
Solution Approach 1:
The air layer is segmented into multiple isolated air pockets within the partition wall rather than a continuous flow path. This segmentation prevents uncontrolled air flow that could cause thermal runaway while still allowing passive heat dissipation through the air layers, maintaining reliability while managing temperature.
Solution Approach 2:
The air pockets create an inert-like environment between battery cells that suppresses active thermal convection and electrical interference. The enclosed air layers provide thermal insulation while preventing the formation of conductive plasma paths that could lead to thermal runaway.
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
The design effectively insulates adjacent battery cells, reducing thermal runaway and enhancing insulation, which improves the battery pack's performance and lifespan by maintaining air layers in a static state and minimizing heat transfer through natural convection.
Implementation Method 1
maintaining air layers in a static state and minimizing heat transfer through natural convection
Data Source
AI summary
A battery pack includes a plurality of battery cells arranged such that main surfaces thereof face each other and a partition wall between adjacent battery cells. The partition wall includes at least one air pocket having a concave shape in a direction away from the main surface of one battery cell of the adjacent battery cells in a thickness direction of the partition wall.