Ventilated Battery Pack Housing for Thermal Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
Lithium-ion batteries used in hybrid off-highway vehicles face challenges with high internal resistive losses and limited thermal headroom due to high charge rates, leading to overheating, and existing cooling methods like liquid cooling and indirect air ventilation reduce energy density and are not preferred for these applications.
Innovation Solution
A direct ventilated energy storage device design featuring a housing with apertures for air flow, where battery cells are sealed and heat sinks with cooling medium passages are in thermal contact with the cells, allowing air to flow through and dissipate heat efficiently, thereby increasing energy density and reducing weight.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If liquid cooling is used to dissipate heat from battery cells, then cooling efficiency is improved, but energy density is reduced and system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the cooling function from complex liquid cooling systems and implements it through simple air ventilation passages integrated directly into the battery pack structure. The ventilation channels are formed within the housing itself, eliminating the need for external liquid cooling plates and pumps, thereby maintaining high energy density while providing effective thermal management.
Solution Approach 2:
The battery pack structure itself provides the cooling function through integrated ventilation passages. The housing design incorporates air channels that allow ambient air to flow directly through the battery pack, enabling the system to self-cool without requiring separate active cooling subsystems, thus preserving energy density and reducing system complexity.
2Temperature
If liquid cooling plates are attached to battery cells, then heat dissipation is improved, but device complexity and weight increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges the housing structure with the cooling function by integrating ventilation passages directly into the battery pack housing. This consolidation eliminates the need for separate liquid cooling plates and associated plumbing, reducing both device complexity and weight while maintaining effective heat dissipation through passive air flow.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention replaces the mechanical liquid cooling system with a simpler air-based ventilation system. Instead of using liquid coolant circulating through pipes and plates, the design uses ambient air flowing through integrated passages to remove heat, significantly reducing mechanical complexity and component count.
3Temperature
If indirect air ventilation with finned heat sinks is used, then cooling is provided, but energy density is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the essential cooling function from bulky finned heat sinks and implements it through streamlined air ventilation passages integrated into the housing. By removing the need for external heat sink components and using the housing structure itself as the cooling pathway, the design achieves effective cooling while maximizing energy density.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention transitions from three-dimensional finned heat sink structures to two-dimensional ventilation passages integrated within the housing planes. This dimensional transformation allows cooling functionality to be embedded within the existing structural geometry, eliminating the need for additional volumetric components and preserving energy density.
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 provides improved cooling efficiency, increased energy density, and reduced weight, enabling higher charge and discharge rates while maintaining safe operating temperatures, even in high ambient conditions, thus enhancing productivity and fuel economy in mining applications.
Implementation Method 1
a heat sink adjacent to the battery cell and in thermal contact with the first face of the battery cell
Implementation Method 2
allowing air to flow through and dissipate heat efficiently
Data Source
AI summary
An energy storage device that includes a housing, which includes at least one end panel that includes at least one aperture therethrough. The device further includes a battery cell housed in the housing. The battery cell includes mutually opposed first and second faces joined at their edges. The device also includes a heat sink adjacent to the battery cell and in thermal contact with the first face of the battery cell. The heat sink defines at least one cooling medium passage extending parallel to the face of the adjacent battery cell. The cooling medium passage opens onto the at least one aperture formed through the at least one end panel of the housing.