A topology optimization design of three-dimensional cooling plate for the thermal homogeneity of lithium-ion batteries

Abstract

The fast charge and discharge performance of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) is highly raised, which causes the temperature difference sharply increases. LIBs will be affected by improper thermal conditions, therefore, this work uses a novel iterative topology optimization method combined with finite element simulation to design a novel cooling plate for thermal homogeneity. The temperature difference of the battery is 14.4 °C under 40C discharge, and it decreases to 8.6 °C by using the cooling design. The temperature difference decreases up to 40%. The weight can be up to 80% lighter under the same temperature difference compared with the traditional cooling design. The novel method can be applied to different scenarios, which can decrease the temperature difference effectively and guide the structure design under complex heat sources with uneven heat generation.

Keywords

• Topology optimization
• Temperature difference
• Cooling design
• Lithium-ion battery