KR102569234B1 - Cooling structure of battery module - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a cooling structure of a battery module, and more particularly, to a battery module in which pouch-type battery cells without terminals are arranged and mounted in a row so that the front and rear faces face each other, the front or rear surface of the pouch-type battery cells. an electrode plate made of an electrically conductive material attached to one surface of the plate to transmit current; A heat transfer plate made of a thermally conductive material that is attached to one side of the pouch-type battery cells to transfer heat to be formed on the outer circumference of the electrode plate and the heat transfer plate is inserted and mounted so that the coolant flows inside, and the flow and a heat sink that transfers the cooling heat of the cooling water to the heat transfer plate, wherein the heat sink forms a slope on a mounting surface where the heat transfer plate is inserted to guide and discharge moisture generated in the surroundings in the direction of the slope. It relates to a cooling structure of a battery module, characterized in that configured.

Description

Cooling structure of battery module

The present invention relates to a cooling structure of a battery module, and more particularly to a cooling structure of a battery module composed of terminalless pouch type battery cells.

Batteries are used as power sources for various electronic devices. Batteries used for electric vehicles or other purposes are composed of battery modules in which dozens or hundreds of unit battery cells are aggregated depending on the required capacity.

In order to increase the use efficiency of the battery, it is necessary to maintain the same voltage level of the battery cells, and for this purpose, a battery management system (BMS) is provided to charge or discharge each battery cell of the battery module and Keep the voltage at an appropriate level.

Recently, secondary batteries capable of charging and discharging have been widely used as energy sources for wireless mobile devices. In addition, secondary batteries are electric vehicles (EVs), hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles that are proposed as a solution to air pollution caused by conventional gasoline vehicles and diesel vehicles using fossil fuels. (Plug-In HEV) and fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEV) are also attracting attention as a power source.

While one or two to three or four battery cells are used per device in small mobile devices, a medium to large sized battery module electrically connecting multiple battery cells is used in medium to large sized devices such as automobiles due to the need for high power and large capacity.

Since medium and large battery modules are preferably manufactured in a small size and weight as much as possible, prismatic battery cells, pouch type battery cells, and cylindrical battery cells that can be filled with high integration and have a small weight compared to capacity are battery cells of medium and large battery modules ( unit cell) is mainly used. In particular, a pouch type battery cell using an aluminum laminate sheet or the like as an exterior member has recently attracted a lot of attention due to advantages such as light weight, low manufacturing cost, and easy shape deformation.

Since the battery cells constituting such a battery module are composed of secondary batteries capable of charging and discharging, such high-output and large-capacity secondary batteries generate a large amount of heat during charging and discharging processes. In particular, since the surface of the laminate sheet of the pouch-type battery cell widely used in the battery module is coated with a polymer material having low thermal conductivity, it is difficult to effectively cool the temperature of the entire battery cell.

If the heat of the battery cell generated during the charging/discharging process is not effectively removed, heat accumulation occurs, accelerating deterioration of the battery cell, and in some cases causing ignition or explosion. Therefore, a high-output and large-capacity battery module requires a cooling system for cooling the battery cells in which it is built.

On the other hand, pouch-type battery cells without terminals have disadvantages in electrical and thermal conduction because their surfaces are coated with polymer materials with low electrical and thermal conductivity. Efforts have been made to supplement electrical and thermal conduction by attaching plates.

At this time, a method of cooling a pouch-type battery cell without a terminal to which a metal plate is attached is a method of directly cooling a metal plate or a cooling system installed adjacent to the battery cells to indirectly cool the battery cell. There is a method, but the former case is more efficient for cooling than the latter.

For this reason, adopting a method of directly cooling the metal plate is more suitable for the purpose of applying the cooling system. The metal plate is insulated except for the electrode part connected to the electrode of the pouch type battery cell to prevent short circuit. However, since the electrode part and the insulated parts form an integral body, it is difficult to implement individual cooling, and only indirect cooling method is adopted.

The present invention is proposed to solve the above problems. In the present invention, in constructing a plate made of metal in a battery module composed of pouch-type battery cells without terminals, the plate made of metal is insulated from the electrode unit. The purpose is to provide a cooling structure of a battery module configured to separately cool the terminalless pouch-type battery cell by separating the parts separately, protruding the insulated part to the outside, and then inserting and mounting the heat sink through the protruding part. put

Furthermore, in enabling individual cooling of the pouch-type battery cell, the present invention is configured to induce and discharge moisture that may occur due to a temperature difference between the heat sink and the pouch-type battery cell, thereby preventing a short circuit. It is aimed at providing a cooling structure for the

In the cooling structure of the battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention for solving the above problems, in the cooling structure of the battery module in which pouch-type battery cells without terminals are arranged and mounted in a row so that the front and rear face each other, the pouch Electrode plates made of electrically conductive material attached to one of the front and rear surfaces of the battery cells to transmit current; A heat transfer plate made of a thermally conductive material that is attached to one side of the pouch-type battery cells to transfer heat to be formed on the outer circumference of the electrode plate and the heat transfer plate is inserted and mounted so that the coolant flows inside, and the flow and a heat sink that transfers the cooling heat of the cooling water to the heat transfer plate, wherein the heat sink forms an incline on a mounting surface where the heat transfer plate is inserted to remove moisture generated on the battery cell mounting surface in the direction of the inclination. It can be configured for induction discharge.

Here, the mounting surface of the heat transfer plate of the heat sink may form a slope in one direction with respect to the arrangement direction of the pouch type battery cells.

In addition, the cooling structure of the battery module is configured to discharge the induced moisture by forming an outlet at the lower end of the heat transfer plate mounting surface forming the slope of the heat sink, and the moisture discharged through the outlet is It may be configured to flow into the cooling water flowing through the heat sink.

In addition, on the mounting surface of the heat transfer plate of the heat sink, a plurality of discharge passages forming a length along the inclination direction are formed at regular or random intervals in a direction parallel to the inclination direction, and the mounting surfaces between the discharge passages are A 'Λ' cross section having an inclination in the direction of both discharge passages may be formed.

In addition, the cooling structure of the battery module may further include a tape-type or band-type insulator attached to one surface of the pouch-type battery cells to surround the electrode plate between the electrode plate and the heat transfer plate.

In addition, a voltage sensing terminal capable of measuring a voltage of a battery cell may protrude from one side of the upper end of the electrode plate.

In addition, the surface of the heat transfer plate may be insulated.

In the cooling structure of the battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention, in constructing a metal plate in a battery module composed of pouch-type battery cells without terminals, the metal plate is separated from the electrode portion and the insulated portion. Separately, the insulated part protrudes outward and is inserted and mounted on the heat sink through the protruding part to enable individual cooling of the battery cells, thereby improving cooling efficiency.

In addition, the cooling structure of the battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention enables individual cooling of the pouch-type battery cell, inducing and discharging moisture that may be generated due to a temperature deviation between the heat sink and the pouch-type battery cell. By being configured to prevent short circuit, there is an advantage that can lower the risk of damage to the battery cell and fire.

In addition, the effects according to the embodiments of the present invention mentioned above are not limited to the described contents, and may further include all effects predictable from the specification and drawings.

1 is a perspective view showing a cooling structure of a battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 2 is a view showing the opposite side of Figure 1;
Figure 3 is a front view of Figure 1;
Figure 4 is a right side view of Figure 1;
5 is a AA′ cross-sectional view of FIG. 2 .
6 is a schematic view of a heat transfer plate on which an insulating layer is formed.
7 (a) and (b) are diagrams illustrating various types of cooling water flow pipes configured according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 8 is a view showing an example of a heat sink in a state in which a cooling water flow pipe is not provided through the cross section BB′ of FIG. 2 .
FIG. 9 is a view showing a state in which an outlet is connected when the coolant flow pipe of FIG. 7 is provided.
10 is a view showing a state in which a discharge path is provided according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 11 is a detailed view of a cross section of the discharge path of FIG. 10 .

Hereinafter, the description of the present invention with reference to the drawings is not limited to specific embodiments, and various transformations may be applied and various embodiments may be applied. In addition, the content described below should be understood to include all conversions, equivalents, or substitutes included in the spirit and scope of the present invention.

In the following description, terms such as first and second are terms used to describe various components, and are not limited in meaning per se, and are used only for the purpose of distinguishing one component from another.

Like reference numbers used throughout this specification indicate like elements.

Singular expressions used in the present invention include plural expressions unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In addition, terms such as "include", "include" or "have" described below are intended to designate that features, numbers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof described in the specification exist. should be construed, and understood not to preclude the possibility of the presence or addition of one or more other features, numbers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof.

Hereinafter, a cooling structure of a battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a perspective view showing a cooling structure of a battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a view showing a portion on the opposite side of FIG. 1, FIG. 3 is a front view of FIG. 1, and FIG. 4 is a right side view of FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A' of FIG. 2 .

6 is a view schematically showing a heat transfer plate on which an insulating layer is formed, and FIG. 7 (a) and (b) are views illustrating various types of cooling water flow pipes constructed according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 8 is a view showing an example of a heat sink in a state in which the cooling water flow pipe is not provided through the BB′ section of FIG. 2, and FIG.

1 to 9, the cooling structure of the battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention is a battery module (1) in which pouch-type battery cells (BC) without terminals are arranged and mounted in a row so that the front and rear face each other. ) to the cooling structure of

Here, the battery cells (BC) may preferably be supercapacitors that exhibit high power efficiency by forming a plurality of current collectors having a positive electrode material and a negative electrode material provided on both sides with a separator in the center at a high density, but are not necessarily limited thereto. It may be another battery cell (BC).

The cooling structure of the battery module 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention composed of the battery cells (BC) as described above includes an electrode plate 10, a heat transfer plate 20 and a heat sink 30. It can be.

Specifically, the electrode plate 10 is a plate made of an electrically conductive material that is attached to one side of each pouch-type battery cell (BC) and transmits current, preferably a metal material, and more preferably made of an aluminum material. It can be configured to deliver current.

At this time, the electrode plate 10 may be attached to one of the front and rear surfaces of the pouch-type battery cell (hereinafter referred to as 'battery cell'), and the battery cells BC do not face each other between the electrode plates 10. The battery module 1 may be configured by being arranged and mounted in a line so as not to

When the electrode plate 10 is attached to one surface of the battery cell (BC), it may be attached to a portion where an electrode lead provided inside the battery cell (BC) is located, and the electrode plate 10 supplied from the electrode lead located inside the battery cell (BC) Current can be received and transferred to other battery cells.

Here, a voltage sensing terminal 15 may protrude from an upper side of the electrode plate 10 to measure the voltage of each battery cell BC, and is connected to the voltage sensing terminal 15 to measure the voltage of each battery cell BC. It may be configured to individually measure the voltage of or measure the battery capacity of the entire battery module (1).

The heat transfer plate 20 may be attached to one surface of each pouch type battery cell BC to be formed around the outer circumference of the electrode plate 10 . That is, the heat transfer plate 20 may be formed on the outer circumference of the electrode plate 10 by being equally attached to one surface to which the electrode plate 10 is attached.

At this time, in order not to interfere with the voltage sensing terminals 15 formed on the electrode plate 10, the heat transfer plate 20 surrounds only both sides and the lower part of the electrode plate 10 as shown in the drawing in a 'U' shape. shape can be formed.

In addition, the heat transfer plate 20 may be configured to be inserted and mounted into a heat sink 30 to be described later with lower portions protruding more than the battery cells BC. That is, the lower portion of the heat transfer plate 20 may function as a coupling portion capable of mounting the battery cell BC on the heat sink 30 .

The heat transfer plate 20 is preferably formed of a thermally conductive material such as a metal material, more preferably an aluminum material, and can receive cooling heat from the heat sink 30, and the electrode plate ( 10) can be configured to deliver. That is, the heat transfer plate 20 can perform heat exchange between the battery cell BC and the heat sink 30 through the electrode plate 10 .

Here, the surface of the heat transfer plate 20 may be insulated as shown in FIG. 6 to prevent a short circuit.

Specifically, the heat transfer plate 20 may be insulated to form an insulating layer 25 on the surface, and the heat transfer plate 20 insulated so that the insulating layer 25 is formed on the surface may occur during cooling. It is possible to prevent the occurrence of short circuit due to moisture such as condensation in advance.

Here, when the heat transfer plate 20 is made of aluminum, the heat transfer plate 20 may be insulated through a hard anodizing process. An aluminum oxide (Al ₂ O ₃ ) film layer is formed on the surface of the heat transfer plate 20 insulated by the hard anodizing process. This aluminum oxide film layer may serve as the insulating layer 25 .

More specifically, when the dilution-acid solution is electrolyzed across the anode on the heat transfer plate 20 made of aluminum, the oxygen generated at the anode strongly adheres to the surface of the heat transfer plate 20. An aluminum oxide film layer is formed. This aluminum oxide coating layer has characteristics such as corrosion resistance, wear resistance, and electrical insulation, and can serve as an insulating layer 25 to prevent short circuits.

In addition, when the hard anodizing process is performed on the aluminum material, the hardness of the heat transfer plate 20 may be enhanced, and it may have very strong properties against moisture including salt water.

The heat sink 30 may be configured such that the heat transfer plate 20 is inserted into the heat transfer plate 20 so that the cooling water flows into the heat sink 30 and transfers the cooling heat of the flowing cooling water to the heat transfer plate 20 .

In addition, the heat sink 30 is composed of an enclosure, and a cooling water flow pipe 31 is provided therein to provide a passage for the cooling water to flow, and the enclosure type heat sink 30 includes a cooling water inlet 32 and a cooling water An outlet 33 is formed so that the cooling water inlet 32 and the cooling water outlet 33 may be connected.

At this time, the coolant flow pipe 31 may be formed in a zigzag length so as to alternately flow in left and right directions, like a conventional pipe-type heat sink shown in (a) of FIG. 7, but is not necessarily limited thereto, The cooling water flow pipe 31 branches from the cooling water inlet 32 to a plurality of pipes as in the manifold type shown in FIG. 7 (b), forms a length along the mounting arrangement of the heat transfer plate 20, (33) may be combined.

The cooling water flow pipe 31 is configured to transfer cooling heat to the heat transfer plate 20 by forming a length adjacent to the heat transfer plate 20 inserted and mounted into the heat sink 30 within the heat sink 30. It can be.

On the other hand, the shape of the heat sink 30 described above is only an example, and the heat sink 30 of the enclosure type is not provided with a cooling water flow pipe 31 as another example, and as shown in FIG. It may be a form filled with .

In this case, the cooling water inlet 32 and the cooling water outlet 33 are connected to the inside of the heat sink 30 to fill the inside of the heat sink 30 with cooling water and discharge the cooling water that has undergone heat exchange with the heat transfer plate 20. can be configured.

The cooling water inlet 32 may be located in the front of the arrangement direction, and the cooling water outlet 33 may be located in the rear in the arrangement direction so that the flow of cooling water flows along the arrangement direction. Also, the diameter of the cooling water outlet 33 may be larger than that of the cooling water inlet 32 . Through this, the possibility of reverse flow to the cooling water outlet 33 may be reduced and the cooling water having undergone heat exchange may be more smoothly discharged.

In the enclosure-type heat sink 30 , a mounting surface 34 into which the heat transfer plate 20 is inserted and mounted may form an inclination α. That is, when the heat transfer plate 20 is inserted into the top surface of the heat sink 30, the top surface forms an inclination α as the mounting surface 34.

This is to discharge moisture generated due to the difference between the heat generated in the battery cell (BC) and the cooling heat generated in the heat sink 30, and the heat generated between the battery cell (BC) and the heat sink 30 Moisture is discharged along the slope α of the mounting surface of the heat transfer plate 20 to prevent shorting of the battery cells BC and reduce the risk of fire.

At this time, the heat transfer plate mounting surface (hereinafter referred to as 'mounting surface') of the heat sink 30 may form an inclination α in one direction with respect to the arrangement direction of the pouch type battery cells BC. That is, when the heat sink 30 is arranged from the front to the rear of the battery module 1, the mounting surface 34 forms an inclination α toward the left or right. Accordingly, the battery cell BC may form a structure mounted on the heat sink 30 in an inclined shape in one direction when viewed from the front.

In addition, an outlet 35 through which moisture induced along the slope α is condensed and discharged may be provided at the lower end of the slope α of the mounting surface 34 . At this time, the outlet 35 may be configured to flow into the cooling water flowing through the heat sink 30 .

That is, in the case of the heat sink 30 provided with the cooling water flow pipe 31, the outlet 35 is connected to the cooling water flow pipe 31 by the connection pipe 35a as shown in FIG. It can be delivered to the flow pipe 31, and when the cooling water flow pipe 31 is not provided, the outlet 35 can be directly connected to the inside of the heat sink 30.

Here, when the outlet 35 is directly connected to the inside of the heat sink 30, a one-way valve is installed at the outlet 35 so that water in the heat sink 30 does not flow backward to the outlet 35. It could be.

10 is a view showing a state in which a discharge path is provided according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 11 is a view showing a cross section of the discharge path of FIG. 10 in detail.

10 and 11, the cooling structure of the battery module according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a plurality of discharge passages 36 forming a length along the slope α direction on the mounting surface 34 at a slope α ) can be formed at regular or arbitrary intervals in a direction parallel to the direction. At this time, the discharge path 36 may be formed as a groove formed to be recessed into the heat sink 30, and preferably may be formed to be provided between the arranged battery cells BC.

In addition, the mounting surfaces 34 between the discharge passages 36 may form a 'Λ' cross section having an inclination in the direction of the discharge passages 36 on both sides. That is, the battery cell (BC) can be mounted on the part forming the 'Λ' cross section, and when moisture is generated around the mounting portion of the battery cell (BC), it is discharged to the discharge path 36 provided on both sides of the battery cell (BC). Moisture is induced, and can be induced and discharged along the slope of the mounting surface 34 .

In addition, the cooling structure of the battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention is attached to one surface of the pouch-type battery cells (BC) so as to surround the electrode plate 10 between the electrode plate 10 and the heat transfer plate 20 An insulator 40 may be further included.

Here, the insulator 40 may be a tape type or a band type, but is not limited thereto and may be formed in other shapes as well.

The insulator 40 prevents current from being conducted to the heat transfer plate 20 and prevents moisture in the coolant from flowing into the electrode plate 10, thereby reducing the risk of fire of the battery module 1, and It can be used safely.

In addition, in the cooling structure of the battery module according to an embodiment of the present invention, only the internal configuration is shown by omitting the frame or housing for supporting and protecting the battery cell (BC) to help understand the configuration, but the frame, housing, etc. It should be understood that this may be provided, and the shape of the frame or housing is not particularly limited.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described with reference to the accompanying drawings, those skilled in the art can implement them in other specific forms without changing the technical spirit or essential features of the present invention. you will be able to understand Therefore, the embodiments described above are illustrative in all respects and are not restrictive.

1: Battery module
10: electrode plate
15: voltage sensing terminal
20: heat transfer plate
25: insulating layer
30: heat sink
31: cooling water flow pipe
32: cooling water inlet
33: cooling water outlet
34: heat transfer plate mounting surface
35: outlet
35a: connector
36: discharge path
40: insulator
BC: battery cell
CW: coolant

Claims (7)

In the cooling structure of a battery module in which pouch-type battery cells without terminals are arranged and mounted in a row so that the front and rear face each other,
Electrode plates made of electrically conductive material attached to one of the front or rear surfaces of the pouch-type battery cells to transmit current;
A heat transfer plate made of a thermally conductive material attached to one surface of the pouch-type battery cells to transfer heat to be formed on the outer circumference of the electrode plate, and
The heat transfer plate is inserted and mounted, the cooling water flows therein, and includes a heat sink for transferring cooling heat of the flowing cooling water to the heat transfer plate,
The heat sink is
The cooling structure of the battery module, characterized in that the mounting surface on which the heat transfer plate is inserted is configured to form an inclination to induce and discharge moisture generated in the surroundings in an inclination direction.
According to claim 1,
The heat transfer plate mounting surface of the heat sink,
Cooling structure of the battery module, characterized in that forming a slope in one direction with respect to the arrangement direction of the pouch-type battery cells.
According to claim 1,
A discharge hole is formed at the lower end of the heat transfer plate mounting surface forming the slope of the heat sink to discharge induced moisture,
The cooling structure of the battery module, characterized in that the water discharged through the outlet is configured to flow into the cooling water flowing through the heat sink.
According to claim 1,
On the heat transfer plate mounting surface of the heat sink,
A plurality of discharge paths forming a length along the inclination direction are formed at regular or random intervals in a direction parallel to the inclination direction,
The cooling structure of the battery module, characterized in that the mounting surfaces between the discharge passages form a 'Λ' cross section having an inclination in the direction of both discharge passages.
According to claim 1,
The cooling structure of the battery module further comprising a tape-type or band-type insulator attached to one surface of the pouch-type battery cells to surround the electrode plate between the electrode plate and the heat transfer plate.
According to claim 1,
The electrode plate,
Cooling structure of the battery module, characterized in that the voltage sensing terminal for measuring the voltage of the battery cell protrudes on one side of the top.
According to claim 1,
The heat transfer plate,
Cooling structure of the battery module, characterized in that the surface is insulated.