Battery Pack Coolant Spray Layout for Thermal Runaway Suppression
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing battery pack designs are insufficient in preventing thermal runaway and heat propagation if a fire occurs, as they primarily cool the lower portions of the battery cells, leading to temperature imbalances and potential fires.
Innovation Solution
The battery pack incorporates an upper cooling unit filled with a coolant, featuring spray holes that correspond to the vent holes of the battery cells, allowing the coolant to be sprayed onto the battery cells in case of a fire. Additionally, a lower cooling unit is in contact with the lower portion of the battery cells, and a fire detection unit is included to initiate coolant introduction when necessary.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If only lower cooling unit is used to cool the battery cells, then the structure is simple, but the fire suppression capability is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling system is divided into two independent units: an upper cooling unit with spray holes positioned above each battery cell, and a lower cooling unit in contact with the lower portions of the battery cells. This segmentation allows each unit to perform its specific cooling function independently, with the upper unit providing fire suppression capability and the lower unit providing continuous cooling, thereby resolving the contradiction between fire suppression capability and structural simplicity.
2Reliability
If coolant is sprayed from above through spray holes, then fire suppression effectiveness is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The upper cooling unit is designed with spray holes positioned to correspond with the vent holes of each battery cell, creating localized cooling zones directly above each cell. This local quality approach ensures that coolant is delivered precisely where thermal runaway is most likely to occur, maximizing fire suppression effectiveness while keeping the overall structure relatively simple through targeted, cell-specific cooling rather than comprehensive coverage.
3Productivity
If the spray holes have larger diameters than vent holes, then coolant delivery efficiency is improved, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The spray holes in the upper cooling unit are designed with larger diameters than the vent holes of the battery cells, a deliberate parameter change that prioritizes coolant delivery efficiency over precise dimensional control. This parameter adjustment ensures adequate coolant flow rate and spray coverage during fire suppression events, accepting that the larger hole dimensions are easier to manufacture with standard tolerances rather than requiring tight precision control.
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 design effectively suppresses fires and prevents heat propagation by immediately spraying coolant onto the affected battery cells and submerging a portion of the battery pack in coolant, thereby enhancing the safety and longevity of the battery pack.
Implementation Method 1
a coolant can lower the heat of the battery cells by absorbing heat from the battery cells while flowing along a flow path of the carrier plate
Implementation Method 2
a lower cooling unit in contact with a lower portion of the battery cell and filled with the coolant
Implementation Method 3
the upper cooling unit is configured to spray the coolant through a spray hole corresponding to a battery cell where a fire occurs
Data Source
AI summary
A battery pack configured to suppress a fire by spraying a coolant from above or submerging at least a portion of the battery pack in the coolant in response to a fire occurring in the battery pack. In response to a fire occurring in a battery pack, a coolant may be sprayed from above to serve as a sprinkler. The fire may be extinguished and heat propagation may be suppressed by submerging at least a portion of the battery pack in the coolant. Since the fire may be extinguished immediately and the heat propagation may be prevented even when a battery cell reaches thermal runaway, safety of the battery pack may be improved.