Battery Pack Screen Cover for Thermal Runaway Flame Containment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing battery packs face safety risks due to rapid temperature increases leading to thermal runaway, which can cause flames to be directly discharged to the outside, potentially damaging the top cover and spreading to adjacent batteries.
Innovation Solution
A battery pack design incorporating a screen cover with through holes that allows high-temperature gases to escape while preventing flames from escaping, using flame-resistant materials and potentially including rupture members to manage pressure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a top cover is coupled to the pack case to cover the battery modules, then the battery modules are protected from external damage, but flames generated during thermal runaway can still be discharged to the outside and damage the top cover
Solution Approach 1:
A screen cover is introduced as an intermediary component between the battery modules and the top cover. The screen cover has a mesh structure that allows heat and gases to pass through while blocking flames, thereby protecting the top cover from flame damage while maintaining the protective function.
Solution Approach 2:
The screen cover utilizes a porous or mesh structure that permits the passage of thermal energy and gases during normal operation and thermal runaway events, while the pore size is designed to be sufficient to block flame propagation. This allows the top cover to remain protected from direct flame contact.
2Reliability
If the pack case is sealed to contain flames, then fire spread is prevented, but high-temperature gases and pressure build-up cannot be released
Solution Approach 1:
The screen cover employs a porous or mesh structure that creates selective permeability: it blocks flames due to their size and temperature while allowing smaller gas molecules and thermal energy to pass through. This resolves the contradiction by enabling pressure relief through gas venting while maintaining fire containment.
Solution Approach 2:
The screen cover may be constructed from flame-resistant materials with specific thermal and mechanical properties that allow it to withstand high temperatures and pressures while maintaining its flame-blocking capability. The composite structure enables simultaneous fire containment and pressure management.
3Reliability
If control means are provided to monitor and control voltage and current, then battery safety is improved, but these means alone cannot provide rapid response to fires occurring in the battery pack
Solution Approach 1:
The screen cover is pre-installed within the pack case structure before any thermal runaway event occurs. This preliminary protective measure ensures that when a fire does occur, the flame containment function is immediately active without requiring detection or activation time, thus providing instant protection while monitoring systems continue their surveillance.
4Object-affected harmful factors
If a screen cover with through holes is used to block flames, then flame exposure is prevented, but the screen cover structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
Rather than creating complex patterns of individual holes, the screen cover utilizes a porous material or mesh structure where the flame-blocking function emerges from the collective effect of numerous small openings. This approach achieves effective flame containment while maintaining manufacturing simplicity and structural integrity.
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 contains flames within the pack, improving stability by preventing external exposure and reducing the risk of fire spread.
Implementation Method 1
the screen cover comprising a through hole configured to expose a top of the battery module to the outside... capable of extinguishing the flame so that the flame is not directly exposed to the outside
Data Source
AI summary
The present technology relates to a battery pack accommodating a battery module, the battery pack including a pack case providing a space in which the battery module is seated; a top cover coupled to the pack case to cover the top of the battery module seated in the pack case; and a screen cover interposed between the pack case and the top cover, the screen cover including a through hole configured to expose a top of the battery module to the outside.