Cooling Plate Self-Circulation for Battery Thermal Runaway Prevention
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing power source devices for vehicles, such as electric automobiles, fail to effectively prevent thermal runaway of battery cells when the coolant is not circulating, leading to potential safety hazards, especially when the vehicle is stopped and the power source device is not activated.
Innovation Solution
The power source device incorporates a cooling plate with longitudinal and lateral coolant passages that allow self-circulation of coolant, even when the circulation pump is suspended, utilizing the heat of vaporization to cool the battery cells and prevent thermal runaway by allowing coolant to flow through both types of passages and along protrusions or inclined surfaces.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If a cooling plate with coolant passages is used to cool battery cells, then temperature control is improved, but safety during non-activated state deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling plate enables the coolant to self-circulate through natural convection currents generated by temperature differences between heated and cooled regions. This self-service mechanism eliminates dependence on external circulation pumps, allowing the system to automatically cool battery cells even when the power source device is not activated, thereby preventing thermal runaway while maintaining simple structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the flow regime parameter from forced circulation to natural convection-driven circulation. By designing coolant passages that leverage density differences caused by temperature gradients, the system transitions from requiring active pumping to utilizing passive thermal-driven flow, enabling effective cooling during non-activated states without additional components.
2Productivity
If coolant passages are designed for forced circulation, then cooling efficiency is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling plate enables the coolant to self-circulate through natural convection currents generated by temperature differences between heated and cooled regions. This self-service mechanism eliminates dependence on external circulation pumps, allowing the system to automatically cool battery cells even when the power source device is not activated, thereby preventing thermal runaway while maintaining simple structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention extracts the circulation pump component from the cooling system, relying instead on natural convection currents within the coolant passages to drive coolant flow. This extraction simplifies the overall system structure while maintaining adequate cooling functionality through the remaining passive components.
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 configuration ensures high safety by effectively preventing thermal runaway chains in battery cells, even when the power source device is not activated, by utilizing the heat of vaporization and self-circulating coolant to dissipate heat efficiently and prevent excessive temperature rises.
Implementation Method 1
dissipates heat by thermally coupling a plurality of battery cells to a cooling plate to transfer heat energy of the battery cells to the cooling plate
Implementation Method 2
The cooling plate is forcedly cooled by the coolant circulating in the coolant passage to dissipate the heat energy conducted from the battery cells
Implementation Method 3
utilizing the heat of vaporization to cool the battery cells and prevent thermal runaway
Implementation Method 4
by utilizing the heat of vaporization and self-circulating coolant to dissipate heat efficiently
Data Source
AI summary
A coolant passage, which is included in a cooling plate thermally coupled to a plurality of battery cells and includes longitudinal coolant passages connected to an inlet side and an outlet side for a coolant and lateral coolant passages connecting the longitudinal coolant passages in parallel with each other, cools the battery cells by allowing the coolant to flow in both the longitudinal coolant passages and the lateral coolant passages via the cooling plate.