Plate Fire Suppressant With Fusible Nozzles for Battery Modules
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Solution Overview
Problem
Battery fires in electric vehicles and energy storage systems are difficult to predict and can rapidly spread to connected cells or modules, causing significant financial damage due to the use of lithium-ion batteries with thin separators that can be damaged by impact or short circuits.
Innovation Solution
A plate-type fire extinguishing device with a sealed chamber containing a fire extinguishing agent at a predetermined pressure, equipped with nozzles sealed by a fusible alloy that melts at a specific temperature to spray the agent onto the fire area, effectively extinguishing the fire.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a battery uses a thin separator to reduce volume and improve charging/discharging efficiency, then productivity and energy efficiency are improved, but the reliability deteriorates because the separator can be damaged by impact or short circuits due to aging and dendrite growth
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a fire extinguishing device as an intermediary safety mechanism between battery cells. This device contains fire extinguishing agent under pressure and is equipped with nozzles that are sealed with fusible alloy. When thermal runaway occurs and temperature reaches the melting point of the fusible alloy, the seal melts and the agent is discharged through the nozzles to suppress fire propagation, thereby protecting the thin separator from fire damage while maintaining the battery's high efficiency design
Solution Approach 2:
The fire extinguishing device is pre-filled with fire extinguishing agent under predetermined pressure before battery operation. The fusible alloy seals are pre-installed on the nozzles with melting points designed to correspond to thermal runaway temperatures. This preliminary preparation ensures that when fire occurs, the suppression action is immediately activated without requiring external intervention, protecting the vulnerable thin separator in real-time
2Quantity of substance
If fire extinguishing agents are stored in conventional containers, then sufficient agent quantity can be provided, but the device complexity increases and the device cannot be easily integrated into battery modules
Solution Approach 1:
The fire extinguishing device is segmented into a plate-shaped body with multiple separate nozzles distributed across its surface. Each nozzle is independently sealed with fusible alloy and can discharge agent directly onto adjacent battery cells. This segmentation allows the device to cover a larger battery surface area with sufficient agent distribution while maintaining a simple, flat plate structure that is easy to integrate into battery modules without complex piping or storage tanks
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the fire extinguishing agent storage function with the structural design of the battery module by using a plate-shaped device that can be directly mounted within the module framework. The agent storage chamber, pressure regulation mechanism, and multiple nozzles are integrated into a single compact plate unit, eliminating the need for separate complex storage containers and reducing overall device complexity while maintaining sufficient agent quantity for effective fire suppression
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 device efficiently extinguishes initial fires by spraying the extinguishing agent at a predetermined pressure when the fusible alloy melts, reducing the risk of fire spread and minimizing damage.
Implementation Method 1
a plurality of sealing covers which is formed of a fusible alloy filled inside the plurality of nozzles so as to seal the plurality of nozzles and which is configured to be melted at a predetermined temperature due to the fire that occurs in the battery
Implementation Method 2
the fusible alloy is configured such that the fire extinguishing agent is discharged at a predetermined discharge pressure through the nozzles that are first molten, thereby extinguishing the fire
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
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AI summary
A plate-type fire extinguishing device (100) of the present invention is configured to spray, in case of a fire in a battery, a built-in fire extinguishing agent onto the area where the fire occurred, thereby extinguishing the fire. The plate-type extinguishing device (100) comprises: an exterior means (110) comprising a chamber which is sealed to have an interior space having a predetermined capacity and is formed in the shape of a plate with a predetermined width; a predetermined amount of extinguishing agent (not shown) that fills the interior space of the chamber at a predetermined discharge pressure; and multiple nozzles (120) coupled to the exterior means and communicating with the interior space of the chamber in an upward and/or downward direction; and multiple sealing covers (130) made of a low melting point alloy so as to fill and seal the insides of the multiple nozzles (120), respectively, and, when heated to a predetermined temperature by a battery, melt to allow the extinguishing agent to be sprayed to the battery through the nozzles (120).