Flexible Separator for Battery Thermal Runaway and Swelling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing power supply devices with secondary batteries face challenges in preventing thermal propagation (fire spread) and mechanical stability due to swelling of battery cells, particularly as capacity increases, and require improved heat insulation and rigidity to manage thermal runaway and vibration resistance.
Innovation Solution
A power supply device with a flexible, heat-insulating separator that deforms to accommodate swelling battery cells, recovers its original shape to maintain mechanical stability, and features a mesh structure or heat-resistant fibers for enhanced thermal propagation prevention, providing increased mechanical stability and resistance to vibration and impact.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If a rigid spacer is used to maintain mechanical stability, then structural rigidity is improved, but the ability to adapt to battery cell swelling is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces rigid spacers with flexible separators that can deform to accommodate battery cell swelling while maintaining mechanical stability. The flexible separator conforms to the changing shape of swollen battery cells through elastic deformation, resolving the contradiction between rigidity and adaptability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the physical state of the separator from rigid to flexible, allowing it to dynamically adjust its shape in response to battery cell swelling. This parameter change enables the separator to maintain both mechanical stability and adaptability to volume changes.
2Productivity
If secondary battery cell capacity is increased to reduce size, then productivity is improved, but thermal propagation risk is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a heat-insulating separator as an intermediary layer between adjacent battery cells. This separator prevents direct thermal contact between cells, blocking the propagation path of heat while allowing high-capacity cell design, thus resolving the contradiction between productivity and thermal safety.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent converts the potential harm of thermal runaway into a beneficial safety mechanism by using the separator's heat insulation properties to contain and redirect thermal energy, preventing it from affecting adjacent cells while maintaining high battery capacity.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If a thick separator is used to improve heat insulation, then thermal propagation prevention is improved, but device complexity is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses composite materials with high heat insulation performance to achieve effective thermal propagation prevention with a thin separator. The composite structure provides superior insulation properties per unit thickness, reducing the separator thickness requirement while maintaining safety.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs porous materials with air-filled voids that provide excellent heat insulation with minimal thickness. The porous structure traps air, a poor thermal conductor, allowing the separator to achieve high thermal resistance without increasing device complexity or size.
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 solution effectively prevents thermal propagation, maintains mechanical stability, and enhances resistance to vibration and impact by adapting to battery cell deformation while ensuring heat insulation and electrical insulation properties.
Implementation Method 1
The separator is made of a flexible material that has both a heat insulating property and restoring force such that the separator deforms when being pressed by each of the secondary battery cells and recovers an original shape of the separator
Implementation Method 2
The separator is made of a flexible material that has both a heat insulating property and restoring force such that the separator deforms when being pressed by each of the secondary battery cells
Data Source
AI summary
A power supply device includes secondary battery cells disposed adjacent to each other and a separator that is interposed between the secondary battery cells adjacent to each other. The separator is made of a flexible material that has both a heat insulating property and restoring force such that the separator deforms when being pressed by each of the secondary battery cells and recovers an original shape of the separator. This configuration provides an improved heat insulating property between the secondary battery cells and prevents thermal propagation caused by thermal runaway. At the same time, this allows the separator to adapt to deformation of a secondary battery cell that has thermally swelled. In response to contraction of the swelled battery, the separator recovers its original shape to maintain a mechanical pressing force. This allows the power supply device to provide increased mechanical stability and maintain resistance to vibration and impact.