Battery Pack Membranes for Thermal Runaway Fire Suppressant Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
Modern battery technologies, such as lithium-ion batteries, are prone to flammable materials and gases, leading to challenging fire suppression due to high temperatures and sealed housings that prevent external fire suppressants from reaching the battery cells.
Innovation Solution
The battery system incorporates condition-sensitive membranes that can rupture in response to specific conditions, such as exposure to acid, elevated temperatures, or pressure, allowing fire suppressants to enter the housing and address fires effectively.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the housing is sealed to protect battery cells, then protection against external contaminants is improved, but access for fire suppressants is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates condition-sensitive membranes into the housing structure in advance, which remain sealed during normal operation to protect against contaminants but automatically rupture when specific conditions (heat, pressure, chemical exposure) are detected during a fire event, allowing fire suppressants to access the battery cells without requiring manual intervention or compromising the sealed design
Solution Approach 2:
The condition-sensitive membranes serve as intermediary elements between the sealed housing and the fire suppressant delivery system. These membranes maintain the sealed barrier under normal conditions while providing a controlled failure mode that allows fire suppressants to penetrate the housing when triggered by fire-related conditions, thus mediating between protection and accessibility requirements
2Strength
If the housing is sealed to contain battery cells, then structural integrity is improved, but fire suppressant delivery is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The housing is designed with pre-integrated condition-sensitive membranes that maintain structural integrity and sealing during normal operation but are programmed to rupture at specific thresholds (temperature, pressure, chemical exposure) during fire events, enabling automatic fire suppressant delivery without compromising the overall structural strength of the housing
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs thin film membranes as part of the housing structure. These membranes are flexible enough to maintain the sealed containment under normal conditions but are designed to fail in a controlled manner when exposed to fire conditions, allowing fire suppressants to penetrate while maintaining the housing's structural integrity during normal operation
3Object-generated harmful factors
If condition-sensitive membranes are used to enable fire suppressant access, then fire suppression effectiveness is improved, but device complexity is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The condition-sensitive membranes are designed to automatically respond to fire conditions without requiring external control systems, sensors, or power sources. The membranes themselves contain the intelligence to detect fire-related conditions (heat, pressure, chemical exposure) and trigger their own rupture, enabling fire suppressant delivery through a passive, self-activating mechanism that adds minimal complexity to the overall 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
This solution enables efficient fire suppression within battery systems by allowing fire suppressants to reach the affected areas within the sealed housing, effectively mitigating thermal runaway and preventing damage from overheating battery cells.
Implementation Method 1
a seal coupled to the housing and reconfigurable from a sealed state to a ruptured state in response to a predetermined condition within the housing. In the sealed state, the seal prevents fluid from flowing through the aperture
Implementation Method 2
The first seal is configured to rupture in response to exposure to an acid to permit flow through the first aperture
Implementation Method 3
The second seal is configured to rupture in response to exceeding a threshold temperature to permit flow through the second aperture
Data Source
AI summary
A battery system including a housing defining an aperture and an internal volume, a battery section contained within the internal volume, and a seal coupled to the housing and reconfigurable from a sealed state to a ruptured state in response to a predetermined condition within the housing. In the sealed state, the seal prevents fluid from flowing through the aperture. In the ruptured state, the seal permits the fluid to flow through the aperture.