Active Cooling Methods for EV Battery Efficiency

A cooling system for DC link capacitors used in electric vehicle power inverters to improve their lifespan by better managing heat dissipation. The system involves integrating a cooling plate into the capacitor housing that has high thermal conductivity to efficiently transfer heat from the capacitor windings and busbars to an external cooling source. This reduces thermal hotspots and allows the capacitor to operate at higher temperatures without degradation. The cooling plate replaces the conventional non-conductive housing material.

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Proactive thermal conditioning of rechargeable energy storage systems (RESS) in vehicles to improve cooling efficiency and reduce energy consumption. The method involves accurately determining the amount of heat generated by the RESS and proactively cooling the coolant to remove that heat. This is done by computing the generated heat based on factors like current, resistance, voltages, and temperatures. The coolant temperature is then set lower than the normal setpoint to remove the calculated heat amount over time before it builds up. This incremental cooling prevents excessive temperature spikes and improves overall cooling efficiency.

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A battery pack design with improved thermal management for electric vehicles. The pack uses a specific syntactic foam material made of hollow glass beads in a silicone matrix. This foam insulates the battery cells from external temperature extremes and minimizes propagation of thermal excursions within the pack. It also dampens vibrations to reduce noise. The foam is made by crosslinking a silicone rubber binder with the hollow glass beads. The foam is sandwiched between the cells and covers the pack sides to provide thermal isolation. The pack also has thermal management features like coolant channels and heat dissipation members to further control temperatures.

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Battery thermal management system using thermoelectric devices to improve reliability and performance. The system uses thermoelectric assemblies in series or parallel configuration to selectively cool or heat the batteries based on temperature. It also allows independent flow control to selectively direct coolant around or through the thermoelectric assemblies. This allows balancing cooling and heating needs. The system monitors voltage/current ratios between thermoelectric groups to determine if adjustments are needed. It also has features like selectively inhibiting coolant flow through devices, switching series/parallel connections, and dividers to block coolant flow.

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Battery module with improved cooling efficiency using an insulating oil to directly contact the battery cells. The module has a housing around the cell stack with a spacer between the stack and base plate. Cooling medium is supplied through the spacer to fill the gap between the cells and base plate. This allows direct contact between the cells and cooling medium for more efficient cooling compared to just metal fins. The medium is then discharged through the spacer back to the supply tube.

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Cold plate assembly for cooling batteries in electric vehicles that provides more uniform and efficient heat dissipation compared to conventional cold plates. The assembly has two separate fluid flow paths, one on each side of the battery, that flow counter to each other. This counter-flow configuration allows more efficient heat transfer since the hotter fluid is always in contact with the coldest part of the plate. This prevents hot spots and non-uniform temperature distribution that can occur with conventional plates.

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Controlling thermal conductivity of a vehicle powertrain component like a battery pack using variable thermally active materials and actuators to dynamically adjust heat transfer for optimized cooling or heating based on operating conditions. The component has a thermally active material over its heat transfer surface with a variable thermal conductivity. An actuator alters the material's conductivity in response to parameters like temperature or duration of use. This allows actively regulating heat dissipation and retention for efficient cooling or warming as needed.

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Electric vehicle cooling system that uses a closed loop liquid coolant circulated between the vehicle and charging station to cool the vehicle battery during charging. The system avoids issues like air resistance and fan noise when stationary by leveraging the charging station's existing infrastructure. The station has a pump and hose to circulate coolant between the station and vehicle. This allows the station to actively cool the vehicle battery instead of relying solely on the vehicle's own cooling systems.

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Battery system for electric vehicles with improved thermal management and cell monitoring. The battery system has battery modules with cells submerged in a fluid for cooling. The fluid flows through an enclosure around the cells. Sensors are submerged in the fluid to monitor both the cells and the fluid temperature and flow. This allows accurate and efficient cooling of the cells while also providing direct sensing of the cell temperatures. The submerged sensors eliminate the need for external connections that heat up and can fuse.

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Battery system for electric vehicles that allows compact packaging and improved cooling. The system uses a frame with beams and traverses that surround the battery cells. The traverses contact the sides of the cells to provide thermal contact. Coolant lines are integrated into the frame beams and ducts in the traverses connect them. This allows cooling fluid to flow around the cells. The traverses also mechanically stabilize the frame. The cell arrangement has narrower second side surfaces facing the traverses, and wider first side surfaces facing other cells. This allows spacing the traverses between cell arrays while still cooling their second sides.

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Battery pack design for electric vehicles that provides improved thermal management and impact resistance compared to conventional packs. The pack has multiple battery modules placed in a tray with beam frames. Selective heatsinks are attached to some frames facing the module sides. A louvered thermal interface medium fills gaps between heatsink and module. This allows reinforced contact and heat transfer between the heatsink and module. The louvered medium prevents gap increase during vibration while still allowing thermal conduction. The pack also has impact-resistant beam frames partitioning module spaces. This provides durability without sacrificing space efficiency. The frames have integrated cooling channels for the coolant to flow through. The pack design allows efficient cooling and impact resistance with minimal volume loss compared to conventional packs.

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Thermal management system for electric vehicles that improves range and performance in extreme temperatures. The system uses a selectable coolant flow between the battery, powertrain, and radiator to balance heat dissipation and storage. Valves route coolant between these components based on a determined coolant flow state. In cold temperatures, the battery becomes a heat source, so coolant is diverted from the powertrain to the battery to warm it. In hot temperatures, excess heat from the battery is sent to the radiator to cool it, while the powertrain gets coolant from the radiator. This selective routing optimizes heat management for each component's sensitivity, protecting the battery in cold and the powertrain in hot.

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Active internal air cooling system for electric vehicle battery packs that provides more efficient and reliable cooling without needing a separate air conditioning system. The system involves mounting a heat exchanger inside the battery enclosure wall with external and internal sections. External ambient air flows through one section and internal battery air flows through the other section. By controlling the airflow between the sections, the heat exchanger can transfer heat from the batteries to the external air without needing an external compressor and condenser. This provides active cooling without isolating the battery pack from the environment.

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Heat management system for batteries in electric vehicles that uses phase-change materials and conduction paths to efficiently transfer heat without adding components like coolant loops or fans. The system involves attaching a first phase-change material element to one end of the battery, and a second phase-change material element to other parts of the battery and a bracket. The elements transfer heat to the vehicle structure and a heat sink. The elements' melting points differ, enabling efficient heat transfer. This allows natural convection and conduction cooling without adding parts, coolant, or power consumption.

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Battery heat exchanger with improved temperature uniformity for cooling rechargeable vehicle batteries. The heat exchanger has a unique flow configuration with crossover passages that extend between the inlet and outlet areas. This allows fluid flow between battery cells in contact with the inlet and outlet sides of the heat exchanger to better balance temperatures. The crossover passages are enclosed in a housing on one of the walls. This prevents direct fluid contact between the inlet and outlet areas, avoiding thermal short-circuiting. The crossover housing can be on either wall, but having it on the wall in contact with the battery cells helps prevent thermal bridging.

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Tubular battery pack for electric vehicles and machinery with improved thermal management, safety, and recyclability compared to conventional battery packs. The tubular design uses thin tubes containing insulated lithium-ion cells for cooling and heating. The cells are mounted inside the tubes and electrically insulated from the walls using washers. Coolant circulates around the tubes to maintain optimal temperatures. This allows direct heat transfer from the cells to the coolant. The exposed cell surfaces radiate and convect heat to the inner tube wall. A shell encloses the tubes and coolant. Modules are formed with multiple tubes in a shell. The tubular pack has a battery management system and relief system for venting gases. The tubular design enables easy maintenance, recycling, and replacement of individual cells compared to glued packs.

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Charging station with integrated cooling system to augment battery pack cooling of electric vehicles during fast charging. The station has a cooling system with fan and chiller to generate and send cooling airflow to the battery pack area of connected electric vehicles. This supplemental cooling helps prevent overheating during fast charging when the battery pack draws high power. The station cooling can be activated during DC fast charging events and continue afterwards.

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Battery cooling system for electric vehicles that uses a rotating cylinder to efficiently dissipate heat from the batteries without requiring additional power or fluids. The system has a cylinder inside the battery enclosure that rotates around a central axis. The cylinder has two insulated chambers separated by a heat insulation plate. The chambers connect to the condenser pipe filled with coolant via sealed holes in the cylinder top. When batteries heat up, thermal expansion liquid in a cavity near the battery expands and pushes a sliding plug upward. As cool air enters through the air inlet hole, the cavity temperature decreases and the thermal expansion liquid retracts, causing the sliding plug to move down and pull coolant through the condenser pipe to quickly dissipate heat from the batteries.

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Battery cooling system for electric vehicles that provides consistent cooling to all battery cells using a refrigerant with continuous phase change. The cooling system has a refrigerant plate with corrugated sections that alternate between battery cell contact and coolant contact. This allows the refrigerant to evaporate in the battery section and condense in the coolant section, restoring the refrigerant without gaps. The corrugated sections increase heat exchange efficiency compared to a flat plate.

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Integrated thermal management system for electric vehicles that combines cooling, heating, and battery thermal management into a single system. It uses a coolant circuit with valves to selectively connect or isolate components like the battery, cabin heating, and cabin cooling circuits. This allows versatile thermal management functions like battery cooling with refrigerant capacity control, active or passive component cooling, heat scavenging from components, cabin heating/cooling/dehumidification, and integrated preconditioning.

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