Electro-thermal performance evaluation of a prismatic battery pack for an electric vehicle

In recent years, electric vehicles (EVs) have grown in popularity as a viable way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by replacing conventional vehicles. The need for EV batteries is steadily increasing. An essential and expensive part of electric transportation is the battery. The operating temperature of the lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery significantly impacts the performance of the EV battery pack. Battery packs undergo temperature fluctuations during the charging and discharging procedures due to internal heat generation, necessitating an examination of the temperature distribution of the battery pack. The geometrical spacing between cells is considered larger and identical and is kept open on two sides for free air circulation. A novel battery thermal management system (BTMS) design is required to effectively dissipate heat from the prismatic battery pack module. The electro-thermal behaviour of the prismatic Li-ion battery pack module was investigated based on the high charge/discharge rate. This study presents the development of a three-dimensional free open-source OpenFOAM computational fluid dynamics model for prismatic cell battery packs that simulates heat generation, air flow field, and temperature distribution across the width and depth of the battery pack module. The prismatic battery pack simulation results are compared with the experimental and simulation results of the cylindrical battery pack. It was also revealed that prismatic cells generate more heat on the backside, requiring battery packs to have increased cooling and space between individual cells to ensure sufficient air circulation for cooling and gas removal. The BTMS is improved by designing with increased space among the prismatic battery cells as compared with the conventional prismatic cell battery pack design.