Immersion-Cooled Battery Module With Shared Liquid Cooling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing battery module cooling technologies face challenges such as poor cooling performance, difficulty in preventing thermal runaway, and increased manufacturing costs due to the need for extensive piping systems for insulating oil.
Innovation Solution
The immersion-cooled battery module design features a module case that accommodates battery units with insulating blocks and connection members, allowing for direct contact with a cooling liquid. This design improves cooling efficiency, prevents thermal runaway, and reduces the volume and weight of the battery pack.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If heat sink contacts only the lower edge portion of battery cells, then device complexity is reduced, but cooling performance deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses liquid cooling channels instead of solid heat sinks to achieve better thermal management. The cooling liquid flows through channels that contact multiple surfaces of battery cells, providing superior cooling performance while maintaining reasonable system complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling system transitions from one-dimensional contact (heat sink at lower edge) to multi-dimensional contact (cooling channels contacting top, bottom, and side surfaces of battery cells), significantly improving heat dissipation efficiency.
2Temperature
If insulating oil pipes are installed for each battery cell stack, then cooling performance is improved, but device complexity and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the cooling systems of multiple battery cell stacks into a shared cooling circuit. The cooling channels are designed to serve multiple stacks simultaneously, reducing the number of pipes and components while maintaining effective cooling performance across all stacks.
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling system is designed with universal cooling channels that can serve multiple battery cell stacks with different configurations. The modular channel design allows the same cooling structure to be applied across various stack arrangements, reducing overall system complexity.
3Temperature
If insulating oil pipes are installed for each battery cell stack, then cooling performance is improved, but weight and volume increase
Solution Approach 1:
By combining multiple cooling circuits into a shared system, the total amount of piping material, insulation, and associated components is significantly reduced, thereby decreasing the overall weight of the battery pack while maintaining adequate cooling capacity.
4Quantity of substance
If battery cells are densely placed in limited space, then energy density is improved, but heat dissipation becomes more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling channels are designed to contact battery cells from multiple dimensions (top, bottom, and side surfaces), enabling effective heat dissipation even when cells are densely arranged. This multi-surface contact approach overcomes the heat accumulation problem inherent in high-density configurations.
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling channels act as thermal intermediaries between densely packed battery cells and the cooling liquid. This intermediary system enables efficient heat transfer from multiple cell surfaces without requiring additional space for cooling 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
The immersion-cooled battery module achieves enhanced cooling performance, effectively prevents thermal runaway, reduces manufacturing costs, and improves energy density by minimizing the increase in volume and weight.
Implementation Method 1
a module case extending in a first direction, having an opening at least at one end in the first direction, and accommodating the battery assembly and a cooling liquid in an internal space connected to the opening
Implementation Method 2
the immersion-cooled battery module achieves enhanced cooling performance
Data Source
AI summary
An immersion-cooled battery module according to the present disclosure can includes a battery assembly with a plurality of battery units. A module case of the battery module can extend in a first direction and have an opening at least at one end in a first direction. The module case can accommodate the battery assembly and a cooling liquid in an internal space of the module case connected to the opening. A sealing cover is configured to airtightly seal the opening.