Open AccessTransient thermal analysis of passive air-cooled battery-pack for various casing material
Author(s) -
G. Naresh,
T. Praveen Kumar,
B Aadhithyan,
Sharma Utkarsh,
J V Nithin
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
iop conference series. materials science and engineering
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1757-899X
pISSN - 1757-8981
DOI - 10.1088/1757-899x/993/1/012131
Subject(s) - automotive engineering , battery (electricity) , electricity , zero emission , internal combustion engine , battery pack , power (physics) , combustion , torque , mechanical energy , renewable energy , electrical engineering , engineering , mechanical engineering , chemistry , physics , thermodynamics , organic chemistry , quantum mechanics
Electricity has become a desirable source of propulsion for automobiles for not leaving behind any pollutants during their running operation. The source of electricity comes from batteries connected together to deliver the rated amount of current in order to propel the vehicle and its auxiliary systems. Internal Combustion vehicles have improved significantly since their inception in the 1800s in terms of mechanical and thermal efficiency. However, only a fraction of the produced mechanical energy is utilized as the driving torque of the vehicle with the rest being lost as a result of mechanical and heat losses. Then comes the problem of harmful pollutants resulting due to the operation of the vehicles like unburnt Hydro Carbons, Carbon Monoxide and Nitrogen Oxides. Although the levels of these harmful exhaust gases have come down with the passing of emission laws around the world over the years, the zero-emission operation of all-electric vehicles is seen as an attractive option for transportation purposes. Electric vehicles negate the issue of mechanical losses by having the electrical power delivered directly to the wheels (through vehicles that use an in-wheel motor system which directly deliver the power to the wheel hub) or through a differential like in a conventional rear-wheel drive vehicle. The battery pack stores and delivers electric power to the wheels and the auxiliary systems. Like an Internal-Combustion engine, a battery pack delivers peak-discharge current (analogous to peak torque in an IC engine at a certain temperature) at a particular operating temperature of the battery pack. Therefore, it is vital to maintain the operating temperature of the battery pack to sustain the performance and the longevity of the battery pack. Prolonged exposure to high temperatures can significantly impact the power delivery and the life-cycle of the battery pack. The battery pack can be cooled by air, liquid or thermo-electric means. This research will be centered around air-cooling as it does not require any special components and it is economical. If the casing of the battery pack has larger surface area for cooling and is made up of materials which have good thermal conductivity, the performance and the longevity of the vehicle can be improved. Our objective is to design a casing and perform thermal and CFD analysis to visualize the thermal performance of the casing while rest (charging/discharging phase) and during motion.