Battery Pack Chamber Segmentation for Thermal Runaway Suppression
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing battery packs lack effective fire-extinguishing mechanisms to contain and suppress fires in secondary battery cells, particularly in high-capacity applications like electric vehicles, where thermal runaway can occur.
Innovation Solution
A battery pack design featuring a housing with vent holes, a chamber divided by partitions, and fire-extinguishing members within unit chambers, along with guides to direct emissions towards the extinguishing agents, using materials like alumina trihydrate and potassium-based agents to suppress flames and prevent fire spread.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Power
If battery cells are connected in series and/or parallel to provide high energy density, then power output is improved, but fire safety deteriorates due to increased thermal runaway risk
Solution Approach 1:
The housing is divided into multiple unit chambers by separation members, with each battery cell contained in its own isolated chamber. This segmentation prevents fire propagation between cells while maintaining high power output through series/parallel connections of multiple cells.
Solution Approach 2:
Fire-extinguishing members are introduced as intermediary elements between the battery cells and the external environment. These members contain fire-extinguishing materials that activate during thermal runaway to suppress flames and prevent fire spread, addressing the safety concerns of high-power battery configurations.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If fire-extinguishing members are added to suppress flames, then fire safety is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The fire-extinguishing members are merged with the separation members that already divide the housing into unit chambers. This integration achieves fire suppression functionality without adding separate complex systems, as the same structural elements serve both compartmentalization and fire safety functions.
Solution Approach 2:
The fire-extinguishing members are designed to activate automatically in response to thermal runaway conditions without external control systems. The fire-extinguishing materials self-activate when exposed to heat or flames, eliminating the need for sensors, controllers, or power sources that would increase device complexity.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If separation members divide the chamber into unit chambers, then fire propagation is prevented, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The separation members serve multiple functions simultaneously: they divide the housing into unit chambers for fire containment, provide mounting structures for fire-extinguishing members, and act as structural support elements. This multi-functionality reduces the total number of components and simplifies manufacturing compared to having separate elements for each function.
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
Enhances fire-extinguishing efficiency by containing and suppressing fires within individual chambers, delaying flame propagation and maintaining the integrity of non-affected cells, thereby ensuring safety and reducing fire damage.
Implementation Method 1
a plurality of fire-extinguishing members each located in a unit chamber of the plurality of unit chambers and configured to supply a fire-extinguishing material to the battery cells
Implementation Method 2
a guide in the unit chamber and configured to guide a flow of an emission discharged from the vent hole toward the fire-extinguishing member
Data Source
AI summary
A battery pack includes a housing, a plurality of battery cells in the housing and each having a vent hole, a chamber between the housing and the vent hole, a separation member in the chamber and configured to divide the chamber into a plurality of unit chambers, and a plurality of fire-extinguishing members each located in a unit chamber of the plurality of unit chambers and configured to supply a fire-extinguishing material to the battery cells.