Battery Pack Cover With Heat-Melt Fire Suppression for Cell Runaway
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing battery packs face challenges in efficiently managing thermal events and fire suppression due to limited space, with existing designs failing to effectively dissipate heat and extinguish fires in specific battery cells.
Innovation Solution
A battery pack design featuring a fire extinguishing system with a pack cover that includes a fire extinguishing material input zone, a flow channel for cooling water, and a heat-melted cap to deliver extinguishing material directly to affected cells, along with thermal resins and insulation to manage heat and prevent fire spread.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a fire extinguishing system is added to the battery pack, then fire suppression capability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The fire extinguishing system is merged with the existing pack cover structure. The pack cover integrates both protective enclosure functions and fire suppression functions by incorporating the fire extinguishing material storage chamber and flow channels directly into the cover design, eliminating the need for separate fire suppression components.
Solution Approach 2:
The pack cover serves multiple functions: it protects the battery cells, provides structural support, and now also houses the fire extinguishing material and delivery mechanism. This multi-functionality reduces overall system complexity while maintaining fire suppression capability.
2Temperature
If cooling water flow channels are integrated into the pack cover, then cooling efficiency is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling water flow channels are integrated directly into the pack cover structure rather than being separate components. The cover includes built-in channels that guide cooling water across the battery cell surfaces, combining the cooling function with the protective cover structure.
3Speed
If the pack cover is designed with heat-melted zones for fire extinguishing material input, then fire response speed is improved, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The fire extinguishing material is pre-positioned in storage chambers within the pack cover, and the delivery pathways are pre-formed through heat-melted zones. When thermal runaway occurs, the heat automatically melts these pre-designed zones to release the extinguishing material directly onto the affected cells, enabling rapid response without complex activation mechanisms.
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 suppresses fires in specific cells, prevents thermal energy propagation, and enhances cooling efficiency by using cooling water or gas to extinguish fires and manage heat, while maintaining space efficiency and safety.
Implementation Method 1
at least a portion of the fire extinguishing material input zone is configured to be heat-melted so that the fire extinguishing material is fed into the cell cover
Implementation Method 2
a flow channel for cooling water, and a heat-melted cap to deliver extinguishing material directly to affected cells
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A battery pack according to the present disclosure includes a plurality of cell units stacked in a direction, each cell unit including a cell stack including one battery cell or two or more battery cells stacked and a cell cover accommodating the cell stack; and a pack case including a pack tray on which the plurality of cell units is seated and a pack cover covering the plurality of cell units and coupled to the pack tray, wherein the cell cover has a top open portion not to cover an upper surface of the cell stack, and the pack cover has a fire extinguishing material input zone to feed a fire extinguishing material into the cell cover through the top open portion of the cell cover, and wherein at least a portion of the fire extinguishing material input zone is configured to be heat-melted so that the fire extinguishing material is fed into the cell cover.