WO2018209776A1 - Battery module and power battery system - Google Patents

Abstract

A battery module and a power battery system. The battery module comprises: a shell (1), the shell defining a liquid inlet and a liquid outlet, and a cooling fluid entering the shell (10) from the liquid inlet and being output out of the shell (10) from the liquid outlet; a series of cylindrical battery cells (3) arranged in the shell (10), each of the cylindrical battery cells (3) having electrodes (31, 32) at two ends, and the electrodes (31, 32) of the cylindrical battery cell (3) being exposed from corresponding openings (141) on opposite sides (13, 14) of the shell (10); sealing members (41, 42) arranged between the opposite sides (13, 14) of the shell (10) and the two ends of the cylindrical battery cell (3), the sealing members (41, 42) preventing the cooling fluid from flowing out from the corresponding openings (141); and a busbar connected, outside the shell (10), to the electrodes (31, 32) of the cylindrical battery cells (3). The battery module and the power battery system have improved cooling efficiency.

Description

Battery module and power battery system Technical field

The utility model relates to a power battery system. More specifically, the utility model relates to a battery module in which a cooling fluid directly contacts a battery unit according to a specific flow path and a power battery system therewith.

Background technique

As the energy storage device of new energy vehicles, the power battery system is the core component of new energy vehicles. A power battery system generally includes a plurality of battery modules composed of battery cells. For power battery systems, it is necessary to take into account factors such as power battery safety, energy density, life, and cost.

At present, cylindrical lithium batteries have been widely used in the electric vehicle market, and they have high energy density characteristics. However, for high energy density power battery systems, more heat is generated during operation, and heat dissipation for the power battery system is also Higher requirements were raised.

At present, the heat dissipation scheme of the power battery system includes: an air-cooled cooling system, which is large in volume and low in cooling efficiency; the liquid-cooled cooling system, in which the cooling plate or the cooling pipe is not directly in contact with the battery, passes through the heat conductive resin material and the battery surface. Heat transfer reduces cooling efficiency while manufacturing and maintenance costs are high. In addition, there is a cooling scheme in which the entire battery cell is immersed in the cooling fluid.

Utility model content

The purpose of the utility model is to solve or at least alleviate the problems existing in the prior art power battery cooling system;

According to an aspect of the invention, the object is also to improve the efficiency of the power battery cooling system;

According to an aspect of the present invention, the object is also to simplify the structure of the power battery cooling system and reduce the cost thereof;

According to an aspect of the present invention, the object is also to improve the safety of the power battery cooling system;

According to an aspect of the invention, it is also an object to define a cooling fluid flow path that allows the cooling fluid to be in more direct contact with the battery unit.

According to an aspect of the present invention, a battery module is provided, including:

a housing defining a liquid inlet and a liquid outlet, from which the cooling fluid enters the housing, and Output from the housing from the liquid outlet;

a series of cylindrical battery cells disposed in the housing, the cylindrical battery cells having electrodes at both ends, the electrodes of the cylindrical battery cells having corresponding openings from opposite sides of the housing Exposed

a seal disposed between an opposite side of the housing and both ends of the cylindrical battery cell, the seal preventing cooling fluid from flowing out of the corresponding opening;

A busbar of the electrodes of each of the cylindrical battery cells is connected outside the casing.

Optionally, in the battery module, the cylindrical battery cell has a circular or square cross section.

Optionally, in the battery module, the cylindrical battery cells are positioned in the housing by a limiting slot at a corresponding opening of the opposite side.

Optionally, in the battery module, a baffle is further disposed in the housing of the battery module, and the baffle guides the cooling fluid to flow in the housing according to a defined flow path. .

Optionally, in the battery module, the baffle defines an S-shaped defined flow path or an M-shaped defined flow path.

Optionally, in the battery module, the housing is a cube, and the housing comprises a bottom plate, a top plate, a first side plate, a second side plate, and a first end plate and a second end plate.

Optionally, in the battery module, the liquid inlet and the liquid outlet are respectively disposed at the first end plate and the second end plate of the housing.

Optionally, in the battery module, the cooling fluid is an insulating flame retardant liquid.

Optionally, in the battery module, the opposite side of the housing having a corresponding opening is made of a plastic material, and other portions of the housing are made of a metal material.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a power battery system for a new energy vehicle is provided, the power battery system including a battery module in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention.

The battery module and power battery system according to the present invention have improved cooling efficiency.

DRAWINGS

The principles of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description,

1 shows an exploded view of a battery module in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

2 shows an assembled view of a battery module in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

3 illustrates a cross-sectional flow path view of a battery module in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

4 shows a cross-sectional flow path view of a battery module in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention.

detailed description

It is to be understood that, in accordance with the technical scope of the present invention, those skilled in the art can propose various structural forms and implementations that can be interchanged without departing from the spirit of the invention. Therefore, the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings are merely illustrative of the embodiments of the invention, and are not intended to

The terms of the top, bottom, left, right, front, back, front, back, top, bottom, etc. mentioned or may be mentioned in this specification are defined with respect to the configurations shown in the respective drawings, which are Relative concepts, so it is possible to change accordingly according to their different locations and different usage states. Therefore, these or other orientation terms should not be interpreted as restrictive terms.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2, there are shown exploded and assembled views, respectively, of a battery module in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention. The illustrated battery module generally includes a housing 10 defining a liquid inlet and a liquid outlet. In the illustrated embodiment, the inlet and outlet of the housing have connectors 21 and 22, respectively. It can be coupled to an external cooling fluid line to provide cooling fluid into the housing 10. The cooling fluid can enter the housing 10 from the inlet and exit the housing 10 from the outlet. It will be readily appreciated that the inlet and outlet ports may be arranged upside down, and in alternative embodiments, there may be multiple inlets and/or multiple outlets. The battery module further includes a series of cylindrical battery cells 3 disposed in the housing 10, the cylindrical battery cells 3 having electrodes 31, 32 at both ends, and electrodes of the cylindrical battery cells 3 from the housing 10 The corresponding opening 141 of the opposite sides 13, 14 is exposed (the corresponding opening at the bottom side 13 is difficult to see). In the embodiment of FIG. 1, a structure of 14 rows and 4 columns of 56 cylindrical battery cells 3 is employed. In an alternative embodiment, the arrangement and number of cylindrical battery cells can be changed, such as a cylindrical battery. The monomers may also be arranged in a staggered manner, and the number of rows, the number of columns, and the number of the cylindrical battery cells may vary. The battery module further includes seals 41 and 42 disposed at opposite sides of the housing 10, the seals 41 and 42 being provided on the top side of the housing 10, the bottom side being between the ends of the cylindrical battery cells, thereby The cooling fluid is prevented from flowing out of the housing 10 through the corresponding opening. The battery module further includes a busbar (not shown) that connects the electrodes of the cylindrical battery cells 3 outside the casing 10 (the outside of the bottom side 13 and the top side 14), and each of the cylindrical battery cells 3 may be connected in series or in parallel or Connect the power supply circuit in any other way. According to the battery module of the present invention, the housing 10 of the battery module together with the electrode sides of the two ends of the cylindrical battery unit define a cooling fluid chamber, so that the busbars, wires and the like of the battery can be arranged in the cooling fluid chamber. In addition to avoiding the immersion of these components in the cooling fluid, and the resulting corrosion, aging, etc. question.

In the illustrated embodiment, the cylindrical battery cell 3 has a circular cross-sectional shape, that is, the cylindrical battery cell 3 has a cylindrical shape. In an alternative embodiment, the cylindrical battery cells 3 may also have cross-sections of other shapes, such as square, elliptical, and the like. In some embodiments, the position of the cylindrical battery cells 3 in the housing 10 can be positioned by opposing stops on the opposite sides of the housing, such as the bottom side 13 and the corresponding opening 141 of the top side 14, each cylindrical battery The cells can be inserted in the positioning slots and the electrodes are exposed from the corresponding openings.

In the illustrated embodiment, the housing 10 is substantially cubic, and the housing 10 includes a bottom plate 13, a top plate 14, a first side panel 11, a second side panel 12, and a first end panel 15, a second end panel 16. In an alternative embodiment, the housing 10 can have other suitable shapes. The various portions of the housing 10 can be joined by snapping, gluing, laser welding or bolting or other suitable technical means. In some embodiments, in the battery module, the liquid inlet and the liquid outlet are respectively disposed at the first end plate 15 and the second end plate 16 of the housing. In an alternative embodiment, the inlet and outlet ports may also be arranged in other suitable locations, such as near the first side panel 11 or the second side panel 12 or the floor panel 13 or the top panel 14 adjacent the first end panel. 15 and at the position of the second end plate 16 or at an intermediate position. In the illustrated embodiment, the seals 41 and 42 respectively include 14 seal units corresponding to each row of cylindrical battery cells 3 to cover both ends of the cylindrical battery unit 3, in an alternative embodiment, The seals 41 and 42 may be formed in various ways to cover the various numbers of cylindrical battery cells 3, or the seals 41 and 42 may be integrally formed to cover all of the cylindrical battery cells 3. In some embodiments, the opposite side of the housing 10 has a corresponding opening, such as a bottom side 13 and a top side 14, which can be made of a plastic material so that corresponding openings can be easily formed and, in addition, the housing 10 The other portions, that is, the first side wall 11, the second side wall 12, the first end wall 15 and the second end wall 16 may be made of a metal material such as an aluminum-based material, which enhances the strength and reinforcement of the entire casing 10. The heat dissipation of the housing 10 also meets the requirements for lightweight.

With continued reference to FIG. 3, a cross-sectional view of the housing 10 of the battery module in accordance with the embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2 is shown in which the flow path of the cooling fluid is shown. The cooling fluid enters the inside of the casing from the inlet port, and then branches and flows around the side of the cylindrical battery cell 3 to sufficiently contact the side surface of the cylindrical battery unit 3, thereby carrying away the heat emitted from the cylindrical battery unit 3. Since the electrodes of the cylindrical battery unit 3 and the bus bars connecting the electrodes in the present application, the wires and the like are all outside the housing 10 defining the cooling fluid chamber, direct contact of these components with the cooling fluid is avoided and thus may be brought about The problem. In some embodiments, the cooling fluid may be selected from an insulating flame retardant liquid, in which case it may act as a flame retardant even when the battery module is subjected to intense compression or puncture to prevent damage to the battery cell pair. Influence of other battery cells around, delay The delay in the late accidents will improve the safety of the power battery system to some extent.

With continued reference to FIG. 4, a cross-sectional flow view of a battery module in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention is shown. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, the housing 10 of the battery module is further provided with baffles 61, 62 which direct the cooling fluid to flow in the housing 10 in a defined flow path. In the embodiment shown in Figure 4, the baffles 61, 62 extend from the first end wall 15 and the second end wall 16, respectively, toward the interior of the housing 10, thereby with the first side wall 11 of the housing, second Side wall 12, first end wall 15 and second end wall 16 together define an S-shaped defined flow path as indicated by arrow F. In an alternative embodiment, the arrangement of the baffles can be varied, for example, the baffles can extend from the first side wall 11 and the second side wall 12 toward the middle of the housing 10 and define an M-shape together with the housing 10. Define a flow path, or other type of flow path. In the S-shaped defined flow path and the M-shaped defined flow path, the cooling fluid is sequentially brought into contact with the respective cylindrical battery cells to serve as a cooling function. In an alternative embodiment, the baffles may also define a plurality of parallel rows. Limit the flow path. It will be appreciated that those skilled in the art will recognize other baffle arrangements that do not depart from the scope of the present application.

Moreover, the present application is also directed to protecting a power battery system including battery modules of various embodiments of the present invention.

The battery module according to the present invention has advantages including but not limited to:

1) Since the cooling liquid directly contacts the side wall of the cylindrical battery cell, the cooling efficiency of the battery module is higher;

2) Since the cooling circuit and related parts are omitted, the battery module has a simpler structure, fewer parts, lighter weight, smaller volume, and higher energy density;

3) The safety of the battery is also improved due to the use of an insulating flame retardant liquid.

The specific embodiments described above are only for the purpose of illustrating the principles of the invention, Various modifications of the present invention can be readily made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention. Therefore, it should be understood that the scope of the invention should not be limited by the above specific embodiments.

Claims (10)

A battery module comprising: a housing defining a liquid inlet and a liquid outlet, the cooling fluid entering the housing from the liquid inlet, and exiting from the housing from the liquid outlet; a series of cylindrical battery cells disposed in the housing, the cylindrical battery cells having electrodes at both ends, the electrodes of the cylindrical battery cells having corresponding openings from opposite sides of the housing Exposed a seal disposed between an opposite side of the housing and both ends of the cylindrical battery cell, the seal preventing cooling fluid from flowing out of the corresponding opening; A busbar of the electrodes of each of the cylindrical battery cells is connected outside the casing. The battery module according to claim 1, wherein said cylindrical battery cells have a circular or square cross section. The battery module according to claim 1, wherein said cylindrical battery cells are positioned in said housing by a limit groove at a corresponding opening of said opposite side. The battery module according to claim 1, wherein a baffle is disposed in the housing of the battery module, and the baffle guides the cooling fluid to flow in the housing. The road flows. The battery module according to claim 4, wherein the deflector defines an S-shaped defined flow path or an M-shaped defined flow path. The battery module according to claim 1, wherein the housing is a cube, the housing comprises a bottom plate, a top plate, a first side plate, a second side plate and a first end plate, and the second end plate . The battery module according to claim 6, wherein the liquid inlet and the liquid outlet are respectively disposed at the first end plate and the second end plate of the housing. The battery module according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the cooling fluid is an insulating flame retardant liquid. The battery module according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the opposite side of the housing having a corresponding opening is made of a plastic material, and the other parts of the housing are made of a metal material. . A power battery system for a new energy vehicle, characterized in that the power battery system comprises the battery module according to any one of claims 1-9.

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