WO2024109820A1

WO2024109820A1 - Energy storage system

Info

Publication number: WO2024109820A1
Application number: PCT/CN2023/133348
Authority: WO
Inventors: 张三学; 雷政军
Original assignee: 双澳储能科技（西安）有限公司
Priority date: 2022-11-23
Filing date: 2023-11-22
Publication date: 2024-05-30

Abstract

The present application provides an energy storage system, which mainly solves the problem of high maintenance cost of existing energy storage systems. The energy storage system comprises a box body, a thermal runaway flue gas treatment device, and a plurality of batteries. The plurality of batteries are arranged in the box body. The thermal runaway flue gas treatment device comprises an adsorption unit, an overcurrent unit, a trigger unit, and an ignition unit. The adsorption unit comprises N adsorption tanks which are sequentially connected in series. The overcurrent unit comprises a plurality of pressure relief pipes and a confluence pipe. Inlets of the plurality of pressure relief pipes are connected to pressure relief ports of the plurality of batteries in one-to-one correspondence, and outlets of the plurality of pressure relief pipes are connected to the confluence pipe. An outlet of the confluence pipe is communicated with an inlet of a first adsorption tank. The trigger unit is used for starting the ignition unit when thermal runaway occurs to the batteries. The ignition unit is arranged outside the box body and is connected to an outlet of an N-th adsorption tank. According to the thermal runaway flue gas treatment device, batteries to which thermal runaway occur in the energy storage system can be processed, and the influence on the whole energy storage system is avoided.

Description

An energy storage system

Technical Field

The present application belongs to the field of batteries, and specifically relates to an energy storage system.

Background technique

With the development of new energy sources such as solar energy and wind energy, energy storage technology has also developed. Lithium batteries have gradually become the mainstream product of energy storage due to their high energy, long service life, high rated voltage, high power tolerance, and low self-discharge rate. The large-scale application of lithium battery energy storage systems has effectively improved the utilization rate of renewable energy and made outstanding contributions to ensuring the safe and stable operation of the power grid.

With the large-scale application of lithium battery energy storage systems, their fire hazards are gradually becoming apparent. Due to the high concentration of battery packs in energy storage systems, under the influence of factors such as battery overcharge, over-discharge, overheating, and mechanical collision, it is easy to cause battery diaphragm collapse and internal short circuit, leading to thermal runaway, which may eventually cause fire inside the battery, and in severe cases cause explosion, posing a safety hazard.

At present, lithium battery energy storage systems use fire-fighting devices to prevent the occurrence of the above safety hazards. When thermal runaway occurs, the fire-fighting device is used to reduce the temperature of the battery in the energy storage system and extinguish the fire, thereby solving the thermal runaway of the battery. For example, CN216497209U discloses a fire-fighting device for a container energy storage system, CN217391443U discloses a fire-fighting system for an energy storage power station, and CN217548833U discloses a fire-fighting device for energy storage batteries that combines insulation and spray. In the above energy storage systems, water or fire-extinguishing agents in the fire-fighting device are used to extinguish or cool down the battery when thermal runaway occurs. Although the use of fire-fighting devices has high reliability, the batteries in the energy storage system may be damaged after encountering water or fire-extinguishing agents, and in severe cases, the entire energy storage system may be scrapped.

Summary of the invention

In order to solve the problem that the existing battery energy storage system may damage the battery when using water or fire extinguishing agent for firefighting, which may cause the entire energy storage system to be scrapped in serious cases, the present application provides an energy storage system. The thermal runaway flue gas treatment device in the system can treat only the battery that has thermal runaway, avoid damage to the battery that has not thermal runaway, and ensure the safety of the energy storage system.

In order to achieve the above purpose, the technical solution of this application is:

The energy storage system provided in the present application includes a box, a thermal runaway flue gas treatment device and a plurality of batteries, wherein the plurality of batteries are arranged in the box; the thermal runaway flue gas treatment device includes an adsorption unit, a flow unit, Trigger unit and ignition unit; the adsorption unit includes N adsorption tanks connected in series, each of which is filled with an adsorption medium for adsorption treatment of thermal runaway flue gas, and N is an integer greater than or equal to 1; the flow unit includes multiple pressure relief pipes and manifolds, the inlets of the multiple pressure relief pipes are respectively connected to the pressure relief ports of multiple batteries one by one, and the outlets are all connected to the manifold, and the outlet of the manifold is connected to the inlet of the first adsorption tank; the trigger unit is used to start the ignition unit when the battery is in thermal runaway; the ignition unit is arranged outside the box and connected to the outlet of the Nth adsorption tank, and is used to ignite the residual thermal runaway flue gas after adsorption treatment outside the box. The above thermal runaway flue gas treatment device can treat batteries that have thermal runaway in the energy storage system, and has no effect on batteries that have not experienced thermal runaway, thereby solving the problem that the existing battery energy storage system may damage the battery when using water or fire extinguishing agents for fire fighting, and in severe cases may cause the entire energy storage system to be scrapped.

The adsorption process is related to pressure. When the pressure is high, the adsorption proceeds quickly. When the pressure rises, the adsorption phenomenon begins to become significant. Therefore, after the pressure is held, the adsorbed substance will be adsorbed on the surface of the adsorbent. Based on this, a pressure valve can be set on the outlet pipeline of the Nth adsorption tank. The pressure valve is provided with an opening threshold. When it is not opened, the thermal runaway flue gas in the adsorption unit is held to increase the adsorption effect of the adsorption unit. When the pressure of the thermal runaway flue gas exceeds the threshold, the pressure valve opens, and the thermal runaway flue gas enters the subsequent ignition unit for ignition treatment. Furthermore, the inlet of the adsorption tank is set at the top of the adsorption tank, and the outlet is set at the bottom of the adsorption tank. At the same time, the adsorption tank is set as a pressure-bearing tank body, preferably a circular tank body with good pressure resistance, which can withstand relatively large pressure, thereby increasing the adsorption effect.

Multiple adsorption tanks are connected in series in sequence through hoses, so that the multiple adsorption tanks can be arranged in different positions and directions to meet the reasonable arrangement of various devices inside or outside the box.

In order to meet the requirements of both adsorption effect and cost, the adsorption medium is preferably activated carbon, molecular sieve or alumina. Compared with adsorption materials such as graphite, montmorillonite, silicate, phosphate, porous glass, etc., the use of adsorption media such as activated carbon, molecular sieve or alumina further reduces the cost of the entire energy storage system.

The above-mentioned thermal runaway flue gas treatment device also includes a cooling unit, which includes M cooling tanks and at least one reflux tank, the M cooling tanks are connected in series in sequence, the inlet of the first cooling tank is connected to the outlet of the manifold, the outlet of the Mth cooling tank or the outlet of the reflux tank connected to the Mth cooling tank is connected to the inlet of the first adsorption tank, each cooling tank is provided with a cooling medium, M is an integer greater than or equal to 1; the thermal runaway flue gas can be sufficiently cooled after passing through the cooling tank, thereby helping to improve the thermal runaway flue gas of the rear adsorption tank. The adsorption amount of flue gas is controlled, so that the adsorption treatment of the adsorption tank is more thorough. The reflux tank is arranged at the outlet of at least one cooling tank, and the installation height of the reflux tank is lower than the height of the cooling tank outlet. The reflux tank can collect the liquid medium after the thermal runaway flue gas is condensed. Since the main substance in the liquid medium is liquid electrolyte, after collecting it, it can prevent the electrolyte in the high-temperature thermal runaway flue gas from being cooled and liquefied, and then being vaporized by the new high-temperature flue gas and brought back into the flue gas channel. After collecting it, the medium to be treated by the adsorbent becomes less, and it also prevents the electrolyte from making the flame larger when it is subsequently ignited by the ignition unit.

To further improve the safety of the energy storage system, a sensing unit can be added at the outlet of the manifold. The sensing unit can send a signal to the battery management system (BMS) when thermal runaway occurs in the battery. The battery management system controls the battery in the box to stop charging and discharging, further ensuring the safety of the entire system.

The cooling unit and adsorption unit can be arranged outside the box to prevent the heat inside the box from affecting the cooling and adsorption treatment of the thermal runaway flue gas. At the same time, arranging the above components outside the box can facilitate the arrangement and installation of various devices and integration. In addition, it can also greatly improve the space utilization inside the box, thereby increasing the capacity of the energy storage system.

For further integrated installation, the cooling unit and adsorption unit can be arranged in an integrated cabinet, the ignition unit is arranged outside the integrated cabinet, and the integrated cabinet is arranged on the outer wall of the box body. The arrangement of the integrated cabinet not only further improves the integration degree of the cooling unit and the adsorption unit, but also improves the protection level of the cooling unit and the adsorption unit, thereby increasing the service life of each unit.

In order to achieve reliable treatment of residual thermal runaway flue gas, the above-mentioned ignition unit includes an exhaust pipe and an igniter; the inlet of the exhaust pipe is connected to the outlet of the Nth adsorption tank, the trigger unit is arranged on the exhaust pipe, and the igniter is arranged at the outlet end of the exhaust pipe, which is used to ignite the thermal runaway flue gas discharged from the exhaust pipe. The above-mentioned igniter is preferably a pulse igniter. In addition, a flame arrester can also be arranged on the exhaust pipe. The flame arrester is preferably a pipeline flame arrester, which is used to prevent the flame from being transmitted downward through the exhaust pipe and causing damage to the trigger unit and other devices.

The present application also provides another energy storage system, which includes a box, a battery thermal runaway flue gas treatment device and a plurality of batteries; the plurality of batteries are arranged in the box, and the pressure relief ports of the plurality of batteries are connected to the inlets of the plurality of pressure relief pipes in a one-to-one correspondence, and the outlets of the plurality of pressure relief pipes are all connected to the manifold; the battery thermal runaway flue gas treatment device includes a cooling unit, a reflux unit and an ignition unit; the cooling unit includes N cooling tanks connected in series, each cooling tank is provided with a cooling medium, and the inlet of the first cooling tank is The outlet is connected to the outlet of the manifold; the reflux unit includes at least one reflux tank, which is arranged at the outlet of at least one cooling tank, and the installation height of the reflux tank is lower than the height of the cooling tank outlet; the ignition unit is arranged outside the box, and is connected to the outlet of the Nth cooling tank or the outlet of the reflux tank connected to the Nth cooling tank; the battery thermal runaway flue gas passes through the N cooling tanks in sequence, and the liquid medium generated in the cooling tank flows back to the reflux tank, while the residual thermal runaway flue gas is ignited outside the box through the ignition unit. The above system cools and collects the electrolyte in the thermal runaway flue gas through the cooling unit and the reflux unit, so as to prevent the electrolyte from igniting at the ignition unit together with the combustible flue gas, thereby solving the problem that the thermal runaway treatment device of the existing energy storage system cannot fully treat the thermal runaway flue gas and there are safety hazards.

The cooling unit and the reflux unit are arranged outside the box to prevent the excessive temperature inside the box from affecting the cooling of the thermal runaway flue gas; at the same time, this arrangement can also improve the space utilization inside the box, thereby increasing the capacity of the energy storage system. Preferably, the cooling unit and the reflux unit are arranged on the same side wall of the box, which can facilitate the arrangement and installation of various components and facilitate integration.

Furthermore, the cooling unit and the reflux unit are arranged in an integrated cabinet; the ignition unit is arranged outside the integrated cabinet, and the integrated cabinet is arranged on the side wall of the box body. The arrangement of the integrated cabinet not only further improves the degree of integration of the cooling unit and the reflux unit, but also improves the protection level of the cooling unit and the reflux unit, thereby increasing the service life of each unit.

In other ways, the cooling unit and the reflux unit can also be arranged in the box, and the space in the box only needs to be partitioned. For example, a partition is arranged in the box, and the partition divides the inner cavity of the box into a battery compartment and an equipment compartment. Multiple batteries are arranged in the battery compartment, and the cooling unit and the reflux unit are arranged in the equipment compartment; the ignition unit is arranged outside the equipment compartment. This arrangement can be packaged by a box, and the cost is relatively low.

N cooling tanks are connected in series in sequence through hoses, so that multiple cooling tanks can be arranged in different positions and directions to meet the reasonable arrangement of various devices inside or outside the box.

In order to meet the requirements of cooling effect and cost at the same time, the cooling medium is preferably ceramic balls, honeycomb ceramic bodies or silica. Compared with alumina, zirconia, titanium oxide, etc., the use of ceramic balls, honeycomb ceramic bodies or silica further reduces the cost of the entire energy storage system.

In order to achieve reliable treatment of the thermal runaway flue gas after cooling, the ignition unit is at least one, which mainly includes an exhaust pipe, a trigger and an igniter. The inlet of the exhaust pipe is connected to the outlet of the Nth cooling tank. Or connected to the outlet of the reflux tank connected to the Nth cooling tank, the trigger is arranged on the exhaust pipe, and is used to start the ignition unit when the thermal runaway flue gas passes through the exhaust pipe, and the igniter is arranged at the outlet end of the exhaust pipe, and is used to ignite the thermal runaway flue gas discharged from the exhaust pipe. Preferably, the igniter is a pulse igniter, and the trigger is a magnetic switch.

In addition, a flame arrester may be provided on the exhaust pipe. The flame arrester is preferably a pipeline flame arrester, which is used to prevent the flame from transmitting downward through the exhaust pipe and causing damage to devices such as the trigger.

Compared with the prior art, the technical solution of this application has the following advantages:

1. The thermal runaway flue gas treatment device in the energy storage system of the present application can provide safety protection for the batteries of the entire energy storage system. When individual batteries in the system experience thermal runaway, the batteries that experience thermal runaway can be treated, and the thermal runaway flue gas generated by the thermal runaway batteries can be discharged through the pressure relief pipe to prevent its thermal diffusion. This can prevent the thermal runaway of individual batteries from causing other batteries or even the entire energy storage system to explode due to thermal diffusion. At the same time, it can also prevent the dangerous accumulation of high-temperature and high-pressure gases in a limited space, thereby minimizing the loss of the energy storage system and reducing the loss of users. In addition, the adsorption unit and ignition unit in the thermal runaway flue gas treatment device can thoroughly and promptly treat the flue gas of the thermal runaway battery, prevent the thermal runaway flue gas from accumulating around the box and causing secondary explosions, and further improve the safety of the entire energy storage system.

2. The cooling unit in the energy storage system of the present application cools the thermal runaway flue gas generated by the battery, mainly condenses the electrolyte in the thermal runaway flue gas, and collects the condensed electrolyte to avoid the defect that the electrolyte in the high-temperature flue gas cannot be fully processed when ignited together with the combustible gas in the ignition unit, resulting in an excessively large ignition flame, thereby achieving the effect of reducing open flames and reducing safety hazards to the surrounding environment.

3. The energy storage system of the present application sets the ignition unit outside the box and implements the ignition process outside the box to avoid the combustion flame from damaging the devices next to the igniter, and also avoids the risk of explosion caused by the combustion flame in a limited space, thereby improving the safety of the entire energy storage system.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG1 is a schematic diagram of an energy storage system in Example 1 of the present application;

FIG2 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the adsorption tank in Example 1 of the present application;

FIG3 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the ignition unit in Example 1 of the present application;

FIG4 is a schematic diagram of an energy storage system in Example 2 of the present application;

FIG5 is a schematic diagram of the arrangement of the adsorption tank, cooling tank and igniter in Example 2 of the present application;

FIG6 is a schematic diagram of the energy storage system in Example 3 of the present application.

The reference numerals of Figures 1 to 6 are as follows: 1-box, 2-flow unit, 3-adsorption unit, 4-trigger unit, 5-ignition unit, 6-cooling unit, 7-sensing unit, 8-pressure valve, 9-integrated cabinet, 10-battery, 21-pressure relief pipe, 22-manifold, 31-adsorption tank, 32-porous plate, 33-connecting rod, 34-inlet, 35-outlet, 51-exhaust pipe, 52-igniter, 53-flame arrester, 61-cooling tank, 62-reflux tank;

FIG7 is a schematic diagram of an energy storage system in Example 4 of the present application;

FIG8 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a cooling tank in Example 4 of the present application;

FIG9 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the ignition unit in Example 4 of the present application;

FIG10 is a schematic diagram of the arrangement of multiple cooling tanks and igniters in Example 4 of the present application;

FIG11 is a schematic diagram of an energy storage system in Example 5 of the present application;

Figure 12 is a schematic diagram of the arrangement of multiple cooling tanks and igniters in Example 5 of the present application.

The reference numerals of Figures 7 to 12 are as follows: 101-box, 102-cooling unit, 103-reflux unit, 104-ignition unit, 105-integrated cabinet, 106-pressure relief pipe, 107-manifold, 108-battery, 1021-cooling tank, 1022-porous plate, 1023-connecting rod, 1031-reflux tank, 1041-exhaust pipe, 1042-trigger, 1043-igniter, 44-flame arrester.

Detailed ways

The present application is described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific implementations. Those skilled in the art should understand that these implementations are only used to explain the technical principles of the present application and are not intended to limit the scope of protection of the present application.

Example 1

As shown in Figures 1 to 3, the energy storage system provided in this embodiment includes a box body 1, a thermal runaway flue gas treatment device and a plurality of batteries 10, wherein the plurality of batteries 10 are connected in parallel, in series or in series-parallel in the box body 1; the thermal runaway flue gas treatment device includes an adsorption unit 3, a flow unit 2, a trigger unit 4 and an ignition unit 5; the flow unit 2 includes a plurality of pressure relief pipes 21 and a manifold 22, wherein the inlets of the plurality of pressure relief pipes 21 are respectively connected one-to-one with the pressure relief ports on the shells of the plurality of batteries 10, and the outlets are all connected with the manifold 22, and the number of the manifolds may be one or more, and the arrangement and setting are specifically based on the actual situation. For example, 60 batteries 10 are arranged in the box body 1, and the pressure relief pipes 21 of 10 batteries can be connected to one manifold 22, and then 6 manifolds 22 are connected to another manifold 22 with a larger diameter, and the manifold 22 with a larger diameter is connected to the adsorption unit 3, or, the pressure relief pipes 21 of the 60 batteries 10 are all connected to one manifold 22, and the outlet of the manifold 22 is connected to the adsorption unit 3. Import connections for unit 3 and so on.

The above-mentioned adsorption unit 3 includes N adsorption tanks 31 connected in series, wherein the inlet of the first adsorption tank 31 is connected to the manifold 22, and each adsorption tank 31 is filled with an adsorption medium for adsorbing the thermal runaway flue gas; the trigger unit 4 is used to start the ignition unit 5 when the battery 10 has a thermal runaway; the ignition unit 5 is arranged outside the box 1 and connected to the outlet of the Nth adsorption tank 31, and is used to ignite the thermal runaway flue gas remaining after the adsorption treatment outside the box 1.

In this embodiment, adjacent adsorption tanks 31 can be connected in series through hoses, so that multiple adsorption tanks 31 can be arranged in different ways, for example, they can be arranged in one row or in two rows, so that the arrangement of each device inside or outside the box 1 is more reasonable. At the same time, the series connection of multiple adsorption tanks 31 makes the thermal runaway flue gas pass through a longer distance, and the adsorption treatment of the thermal runaway flue gas is more thorough.

As shown in FIG. 2 , the above-mentioned adsorption tank 31 can be made of a circular barrel body, and the two ends of the circular barrel body can be sealed by circular end covers (not shown in FIG. 2 ), and the circular end covers can be connected to the circular barrel body through flanges, or the circular end covers can be welded to the two ends of the circular barrel body. Two porous plates 32 are arranged in the above-mentioned adsorption tank 31, and the two porous plates 32 are axially connected by a connecting rod 33 with threads at both ends, that is, the two ends of the connecting rod 33 pass through the porous plates 32 respectively and are fixed by nuts. The two adjacent porous plates 32 and the inner wall of the adsorption tank 31 form an adsorption cavity, and the adsorption medium is filled in the adsorption cavity. The adsorption medium preferably uses activated carbon, molecular sieve or alumina with good adsorption performance and low cost.

In order to reduce the pollution to the environment, the remaining thermal runaway flue gas after adsorption needs to be ignited, that is, an ignition unit 5 is set after the adsorption unit 3. The number of ignition units 5 can be set according to the number and demand of batteries 10 in the energy storage system, and can be set to 1, 2, 3 or 4 or more. Setting it to 2 or more can ensure the reliability of ignition. When a certain ignition unit 5 fails or fails, other ignition units 5 can work normally. A single ignition unit 5 specifically includes an exhaust pipe 51 and an igniter 52. The inlet of the exhaust pipe 51 is connected to the outlet of the last adsorption tank 31. The igniter 52 is arranged at the outlet end of the exhaust pipe 51, and is used to ignite the thermal runaway flue gas discharged from the exhaust pipe 51. A flame arrester 53 can also be arranged on the above-mentioned exhaust pipe 51. The flame arrester 53 prevents the flame from transmitting downward. Specifically, it can be a one-way valve or a pipeline flame arrester, etc., and a compacted filter is arranged in the pipeline flame arrester. In addition, a rain cover can be arranged at the top of the exhaust pipe 51 to prevent external impurities or water from entering the exhaust pipe 51.

The igniter 52 can be of various structures, for example, an existing arc igniter or a resistance wire igniter can be used. The arc igniter can be a pulse igniter. The power supply method of the igniter can be Dry cell batteries or alternating current are used according to the on-site environment. If an arc igniter is used, the arc igniter is installed at the top of the exhaust pipe 51. When the trigger unit 4 detects that there is thermal runaway smoke in the exhaust pipe 51, a signal is fed back to the control circuit board of the arc igniter. The control circuit board connects the dry cell batteries 10 and the booster coil. After the booster coil increases the voltage, the air between the arc generating heads in the arc igniter, which are very close to each other, is ionized to form an arc, igniting the residual thermal runaway smoke. If a resistance wire igniter is used, the resistance wire igniter is installed at the top of the exhaust pipe 51. When the trigger unit 4 detects that there is thermal runaway smoke in the exhaust pipe 51, a signal is given to the resistance wire igniter. The resistance wire of the resistance wire igniter is rapidly heated to reach the combustible temperature of the gas, and then the residual thermal runaway smoke is ignited.

The trigger unit 4 in this embodiment can be a sensor of different structures, as long as it can send a signal when the battery has thermal runaway, that is, when the battery 10 is in thermal runaway, the temperature, pressure or gas volume fraction and other parameters are detected in real time, and a signal can be sent when it exceeds a set threshold. The signal can be an electrical signal or a mechanical signal. Specifically, the above sensor can be at least one of a pressure sensor, a gas sensor or a temperature sensor. The pressure sensor and the gas sensor can be arranged at the outlet of the manifold or in the exhaust pipe, and the temperature sensor can be arranged at the outlet of the manifold or on the battery housing. The pressure sensor can be a magnetic switch.

Example 2

As shown in Figures 2 to 5, the energy storage system provided in this embodiment includes a box body 1, a thermal runaway flue gas treatment device and a plurality of batteries 10, wherein the plurality of batteries 10 are arranged in parallel, in series or in series-parallel in the box body 1; the thermal runaway flue gas treatment device includes an adsorption unit 3, a flow unit 2, a trigger unit 4 and an ignition unit 5; different from Example 1, the thermal runaway flue gas treatment device also includes a cooling unit 6, the cooling unit 6 includes M cooling tanks 61 and at least one reflux tank 62, the M cooling tanks 61 are connected in series in sequence, the inlet of the first cooling tank 61 is connected to the outlet of the manifold 22, and the M cooling tank 6 The outlet of 1 or the outlet of the reflux tank connected to the Mth cooling tank is connected to the inlet of the first adsorption tank 31, and each cooling tank 61 is provided with a cooling medium; the reflux tank 62 is arranged at the outlet of at least one cooling tank 61, and the installation height of the reflux tank 62 is lower than the height of the outlet of the cooling tank 61, and is used to collect the liquid medium after the condensation of the thermal runaway flue gas; the thermal runaway flue gas passes through the M cooling tanks 61 in sequence for cooling treatment, and the liquid medium generated in the cooling tank 61 flows back to the reflux tank 62, and the residual thermal runaway flue gas passes through the N adsorption tanks 31 for adsorption treatment, and is finally ignited.

The reflux tank 62 can be any shape of tank, and of course, some tanks that do not interact with the electrolyte can also be used. The purpose of the flexible bag structure of the reaction is to collect small droplets of electrolyte in the thermal runaway flue gas.

The cooling tank 61 can cool the thermal runaway flue gas before adsorption. It mainly condenses the electrolyte in the thermal runaway flue gas and collects the condensed electrolyte to avoid the electrolyte from igniting in the ignition unit 5 when the subsequent adsorption part is not treated sufficiently. The ignition flame is too large to damage the devices next to the igniter.

As shown in Fig. 5, to increase the adsorption effect, the inlet 34 of the adsorption tank 31 can be set at the top of the adsorption tank 31, and the outlet 35 can be set at the bottom of the adsorption tank 31. At the same time, the adsorption tank 31 adopts a round tank body with good pressure resistance.

This embodiment does not limit the arrangement and internal structure of the cooling tank 61 and the adsorption tank 31. As long as the use requirements can be met, the cooling medium and the adsorption medium inside the cooling tank 61 and the adsorption tank 31 can be partially or fully filled to meet different use requirements. The above-mentioned cooling medium can be one of ceramic balls, honeycomb ceramic bodies, silicon dioxide, aluminum oxide, zirconium oxide, and titanium oxide. The system of the present application uses physical cooling to cool down the substances ejected during thermal runaway of the battery. This type of substance has a good cooling effect and stable properties. More importantly, no gas is generated, so the amount of subsequent adsorption materials and the adsorption load are greatly reduced.

In addition, the energy storage system in this embodiment also includes a sensing unit 7 and a pressure valve 8; the sensing unit 7 can send a signal to the battery management system (BMS) when the battery 10 has thermal runaway, and the battery management system controls the battery in the box 1 to stop charging and discharging, thereby increasing the safety of the entire system. The selection of the above-mentioned sensing unit 7 can be similar to that of the trigger device, and can be specifically one of a pressure sensor, a gas sensor or a temperature sensor. In addition, in order to further improve the pressure holding effect, a pressure valve 8 can be set on the outlet pipeline of the Nth adsorption tank. The pressure valve 8 is provided with a threshold value. When it is not opened, the thermal runaway flue gas in the cooling unit 6 and the adsorption unit 3 is held in pressure to increase the adsorption effect and the cooling effect. When the pressure of the thermal runaway flue gas exceeds the threshold value, the pressure valve 8 opens, and the thermal runaway flue gas enters the subsequent ignition unit 5 for ignition.

When one or more batteries 10 in the box 1 experience thermal runaway and the pressure relief port is opened, the high-temperature substances inside the battery 10 will enter the pressure relief pipe 21 through the pressure relief port, and then enter the cooling tank 61 through the manifold 22 for cooling, so that some solid particles and vaporized electrolyte in the high-temperature substances are re-condensed, and after cooling down, the various substances in the cooling tank 61 enter the adsorption tank 31, and the adsorption medium in the adsorption tank 31 adsorbs the remaining liquid and most of the combustible gas, and the gas not adsorbed is Ignition is achieved outside the exhaust pipe, thereby processing the thermal runaway of a single battery 10, preventing the battery 10 that has thermal runaway from affecting other safe batteries 10, and preventing secondary disasters such as explosion and fire of the entire energy storage system due to thermal runaway of a single battery 10.

The adsorption unit and ignition unit of the thermal runaway flue gas treatment device in this embodiment can thoroughly and promptly treat the flue gas of the thermal runaway battery, avoiding the accumulation of thermal runaway flue gas around the box and causing secondary explosions, thereby further improving the safety of the entire energy storage system.

Example 3

As shown in FIG6 , the energy storage system provided in this embodiment includes a housing 1, a thermal runaway flue gas treatment device and a plurality of batteries 10; the thermal runaway flue gas treatment device includes an adsorption unit 3, a current flow unit 2, a trigger unit 4, an ignition unit 5 and a cooling unit 6; the plurality of batteries 10 are arranged in parallel, in series or in series-parallel in the housing 1, and the pressure relief ports of the plurality of batteries 10 are connected to the manifold 22 through the pressure relief pipe 21, and the manifold 22 is connected to the inlet of the first cooling tank 61.

Different from the second embodiment, the cooling unit 6 and the adsorption unit 3 in this embodiment are arranged outside the box 1, which not only prevents the heat inside the box 1 from affecting the cooling and adsorption of the thermal runaway flue gas, but also facilitates the arrangement and installation of various components and integration. In addition, the space utilization rate inside the box can be greatly improved, thereby increasing the capacity of the energy storage system.

Furthermore, the cooling unit 6 and the adsorption unit 3 are arranged in an integrated cabinet 9, and the integrated cabinet 9 is arranged on the outer wall of the box body 1, and the ignition unit 5 is arranged outside the integrated cabinet 9. The integrated cabinet 9 can be a cabinet arranged on the outer wall of the box body, that is, it is a separate structure from the box body 1, or it can be a part of the inner cavity of the box body, that is, a partition is arranged in the box body 1, and the inner cavity of the box body is divided into two parts, one of which is a battery compartment and the other is an equipment compartment. The cooling unit 6 and the adsorption unit 3 are placed in the equipment compartment, and the ignition unit 5 is arranged on the top of the equipment compartment. The setting of the integrated cabinet not only further improves the integration degree of the cooling unit and the adsorption unit, but also improves the protection level of the cooling unit and the adsorption unit, thereby improving the service life of each unit.

The above-mentioned thermal runaway flue gas treatment device can treat the thermal runaway flue gas of the battery with thermal runaway. The thermal runaway flue gas discharges the high-temperature gas to the subsequent cooling unit, adsorption unit and ignition unit through the pressure relief pipe 21 and the manifold 22, and cools, adsorbs and ignites the thermal runaway flue gas in turn. This method not only avoids the dangerous accumulation of high-temperature and high-pressure gases in a limited space, but also avoids the pollution of the atmosphere by the thermal runaway flue gas, thereby greatly improving the safety of the battery 10 during storage and charging.

Example 4

As shown in Figures 7 to 10, the energy storage system provided in this embodiment includes a box body 101, a battery thermal runaway flue gas treatment device and a plurality of batteries 108; the plurality of batteries 108 are arranged in the box body 101, and the pressure relief ports of the plurality of batteries 108 are connected one-to-one with the inlets of the plurality of pressure relief pipes, and the outlets of the plurality of pressure relief pipes are all connected with the manifold.

The battery thermal runaway flue gas treatment device includes a cooling unit 102, a reflux unit 103 and an ignition unit 104; the cooling unit 102 includes N cooling tanks 1021 connected in series, each cooling tank 1021 is provided with a cooling medium; the reflux unit 103 includes at least one reflux tank 1031, the reflux tank 1031 is provided at the outlet of at least one cooling tank 1021, and the installation height of the reflux tank 1031 is lower than the height of the outlet of the cooling tank 1021, that is, the reflux tank 1031 can be provided at the outlet of any cooling tank 1021 from the first cooling tank 1021 to the Nth cooling tank 1021, for collecting the liquid medium after the thermal runaway flue gas is condensed. Preferably, the reflux tank 1031 is provided at the outlet of the first cooling tank 1021 and/or the last cooling tank 1021. The above-mentioned ignition unit 104 is arranged outside the box body 101 and is connected to the outlet of the Nth cooling tank or the outlet of the reflux tank connected to the Nth cooling tank; the battery thermal runaway smoke is cooled by N cooling tanks 1021 in sequence, and the liquid medium generated in the cooling tank 1021 flows back to the reflux tank 1031. At the same time, the residual thermal runaway smoke is ignited outside the box through the ignition unit 104.

The cooling tank 1021 can cool the thermal runaway flue gas, mainly condense the electrolyte in the thermal runaway flue gas, and collect the condensed electrolyte through the reflux tank 1031 to prevent the subsequent electrolyte from being ignited together with the combustible flue gas in the ignition unit 104, making the ignition flame larger and creating a safety hazard.

In this embodiment, adjacent cooling tanks 1021 are connected in series through hoses, and multiple cooling tanks 1021 can be arranged in different ways through hoses. For example, they can be arranged in one row or two rows, so that the arrangement of each device inside or outside the box 101 is more reasonable. At the same time, the series connection of multiple cooling tanks 1021 makes the thermal runaway flue gas pass through a longer distance, the cooling treatment of the thermal runaway flue gas of the battery is more thorough, and the cooling reflux of the vaporized electrolyte is also more thorough, so that the cooled flue gas can be fully burned as much as possible.

As shown in FIG. 10 , the reflux tank 1031 may be a tank of any shape, and of course, may also be a flexible bag structure that does not react with the electrolyte, the purpose of which is to collect small droplets of electrolyte in the thermal runaway flue gas.

As shown in FIG8 , the cooling tank 1021 can be made of a circular barrel, both ends of which can be sealed by circular end covers (not shown in FIG8 ), and the circular end covers can be connected to the circular barrel by flanges. The cooling tank 1021 is connected to the inner wall of the cooling tank 1021, or the circular end caps can be welded to the two ends of the circular barrel body. Two porous plates 1022 are arranged in the cooling tank 1021, and the two porous plates 1022 are axially connected by a connecting rod 1023 with threads at both ends, that is, the two ends of the connecting rod 1023 pass through the porous plates 1022 respectively, and are fixed by nuts. The two adjacent porous plates 1022 and the inner wall of the cooling tank 1021 form a cooling cavity, and the cooling medium is filled in the cooling cavity. The cooling medium preferably uses ceramic balls, honeycomb ceramic bodies or silicon dioxide with good cooling performance and low cost. Compared with aluminum oxide, zirconium oxide, titanium oxide, etc., the use of ceramic balls, honeycomb ceramic bodies or silicon dioxide further reduces the cost of the entire energy storage system. The system of this application uses physical cooling materials to cool the substances ejected during thermal runaway of the battery. This type of substance has a good cooling effect and stable properties. More importantly, no gas is generated, so the subsequent ignition treatment of the thermal runaway flue gas is more thorough.

In order to reduce pollution to the environment, the thermal runaway flue gas remaining after cooling is ignited, that is, an ignition unit 104 is set after the cooling unit 102. The number of ignition units 104 can be set according to the number and demand of batteries 108 in the energy storage system, and can be set to 1, 2, 3 or 4 or more. Setting it to 2 or more can ensure the reliability of ignition. When one ignition unit 104 fails or malfunctions, other ignition units 104 can work normally.

As shown in FIG9 , a single ignition unit 104 specifically includes an exhaust pipe 1041, a trigger 1042 and an igniter 1043. The inlet of the exhaust pipe 1041 is connected to the outlet of the last cooling tank 1021 or the outlet of the reflux tank connected to the Nth cooling tank. The igniter 1043 is arranged at the outlet end of the exhaust pipe 1041, and is used to ignite the thermal runaway flue gas discharged from the exhaust pipe 1041. The trigger 1042 is arranged on the exhaust pipe, and is used to start the igniter 1043 when the thermal runaway flue gas passes through the exhaust pipe. A flame arrester 1044 can also be arranged on the exhaust pipe 1041, and the flame arrester 1044 prevents the flame from transmitting downward. The flame arrester 1044 can be specifically a one-way valve or a pipeline flame arrester, etc., and a compacted filter is arranged in the pipeline flame arrester. In addition, a rain cover can be arranged at the top of the exhaust pipe 1041 to prevent external impurities or water vapor from entering the exhaust pipe 1041.

The above-mentioned igniter 1043 can have various structures. For example, an existing arc igniter or a resistance wire igniter can be specifically used. The arc igniter can specifically use a pulse igniter. The igniter can be powered by dry batteries or alternating current according to the on-site environment. If an arc igniter is used, the arc igniter is installed on the top of the exhaust pipe 1041. When the trigger 1042 detects thermal runaway flue gas in the exhaust pipe 1041, it feeds back a signal to the control circuit board of the arc igniter. The control circuit board connects the dry battery and the booster coil. After the booster coil increases the voltage, the air between the arc generating heads in the arc igniter, which are very close to each other, is ionized to form an arc, igniting the cooled thermal runaway flue gas. If a resistance wire igniter is used, the resistor The wire igniter is installed at the top of the exhaust pipe 1041. When the trigger 1042 detects thermal runaway smoke in the exhaust pipe 1041, it sends a signal to the resistance wire igniter. The resistance wire of the resistance wire igniter is rapidly heated to reach the flammable temperature of the gas, and then ignites the cooled thermal runaway smoke.

The trigger 1042 in this embodiment can be a sensor of different structures, as long as it can send a signal when the battery has thermal runaway, that is, when the battery 108 is in thermal runaway, the temperature, pressure or gas volume fraction and other parameters are detected in real time, and a signal can be sent when it exceeds a set threshold. The signal can be an electrical signal or a mechanical signal. Specifically, the above sensor can be at least one of a pressure sensor, a gas sensor or a temperature sensor. The pressure sensor and the gas sensor can be arranged in the exhaust pipe 1041, and the temperature sensor can be arranged on the battery housing. The pressure sensor can be a magnetic switch, etc.

Example 5

As shown in Figures 11 and 12, the energy storage system provided in this embodiment includes a box 101, a battery thermal runaway flue gas treatment device and multiple batteries; multiple batteries 108 are arranged in parallel in the box 101 and then connected in series, and the pressure relief ports of the multiple batteries 108 are connected to the manifold 107 through the pressure relief pipe 106, and the manifold 107 is connected to the flue gas inlet of the first cooling tank 1021. The above-mentioned battery thermal runaway flue gas treatment device includes a cooling unit 102, a reflux unit 103 and an ignition unit 104; different from Example 4, the cooling unit 102 and the reflux unit 103 in this embodiment are arranged outside the box 101 to avoid the heat in the box 101 from affecting the cooling treatment of the thermal runaway flue gas.

Furthermore, the cooling unit 102 and the reflux unit 103 are both arranged in an integrated cabinet 105, the integrated cabinet 105 is arranged on the side wall of the box body 101, and the ignition unit 104 is arranged outside the integrated cabinet 105. The setting of the integrated cabinet 105 not only further improves the integration degree of the cooling unit 102 and the reflux unit 103, but also improves the protection level of the cooling unit 102 and the reflux unit 103, thereby improving the service life of each unit. In other ways, the space inside the box body 101 can also be partitioned. For example, a partition is arranged in the box body 101, and the partition divides the inner cavity of the box body 101 into a battery compartment and an equipment compartment. A plurality of batteries 108 are arranged in the battery compartment, and the cooling unit 102 and the reflux unit 103 are arranged in the equipment compartment; the ignition unit 104 is arranged outside the equipment compartment. This setting can be packaged by a single box body, and the cost is relatively low.

The present embodiment does not limit the arrangement and internal structure of the cooling tank 1021, as long as it can meet the use requirements, the cooling material inside the cooling tank 1021 can be partially filled or fully filled to meet different use requirements. The system can set a reflux tank 1031 at the outlet of any cooling tank 1021 from the first cooling tank 1021 to the Nth cooling tank 1021. Preferably, the reflux tank 1031 is set at the outlet of any cooling tank 1021 from the Nth cooling tank 1021. A reflux tank 1031 is provided at the outlet of the N-1th cooling tank 1021 .

When one or more batteries 108 in the box 101 experience thermal runaway and the pressure relief vent opens, the high-temperature substance inside the battery 108 will enter the pressure relief pipe 106 through the pressure relief vent, and then enter the cooling tank 1021 through the manifold 107 to be cooled, so that some solid particles in the high-temperature substance are blocked, and the vaporized electrolyte re-condenses, and enters the reflux tank 1031 after the various substances in the cooling tank 1021 are cooled, and the remaining flue gas is ignited outside the box 101. The ignition is carried out in a non-enclosed environment, and secondary disasters such as explosion and fire of the entire device caused by thermal runaway are avoided.

The battery thermal runaway flue gas treatment device in the system of this embodiment can cool the thermal runaway flue gas when the battery thermal runaway occurs, and then ignite the remaining flue gas to prevent the thermal runaway flue gas from polluting the atmosphere. It also prevents the thermal runaway flue gas from accumulating in the lithium battery 108 and causing explosions, fires and other dangerous events, thereby greatly improving the safety of the battery 108 and effectively improving the safety and reliability of the energy storage system.

Claims

An energy storage system, characterized in that it includes a box, a thermal runaway flue gas treatment device and multiple batteries; the thermal runaway flue gas treatment device is connected to the pressure relief ports of the multiple batteries in the box to treat the thermal runaway flue gas.
The energy storage system according to claim 1, characterized in that the thermal runaway flue gas treatment device comprises an adsorption unit, a flow unit, a trigger unit and an ignition unit;

The adsorption unit comprises N adsorption tanks connected in series, each of which is filled with an adsorption medium for adsorbing the thermal runaway flue gas, where N is an integer greater than or equal to 1;

The flow unit includes a plurality of pressure relief pipes and a manifold, the inlets of the plurality of pressure relief pipes are respectively connected to the pressure relief ports of the plurality of batteries in a one-to-one correspondence, the outlets of the plurality of pressure relief pipes are all connected to the manifold, and the outlet of the manifold is connected to the inlet of the first adsorption tank;

The trigger unit is used to start the ignition unit when the battery is in thermal runaway;

The ignition unit is arranged outside the box and connected to the outlet of the Nth adsorption tank, and is used for igniting the thermal runaway flue gas remaining after the adsorption treatment outside the box.
The energy storage system according to claim 2 is characterized in that the thermal runaway flue gas treatment device also includes a pressure valve; the pressure valve is arranged on the outlet pipeline of the Nth adsorption tank, and is used to hold back the pressure of the thermal runaway flue gas in the adsorption unit.
The energy storage system according to claim 2 is characterized in that the inlet of the adsorption tank is arranged at the top end of the adsorption tank, and the outlet is arranged at the bottom end of the adsorption tank.
The energy storage system according to claim 4 is characterized in that a plurality of adsorption tanks are connected in series in sequence through a hose, and the adsorption tanks are pressure-bearing tank bodies.
The energy storage system according to claim 5 is characterized in that the adsorption medium is activated carbon, molecular sieve or alumina.
The energy storage system according to any one of claims 2 to 6 is characterized in that the thermal runaway flue gas treatment device also includes a cooling unit; the cooling unit includes M cooling tanks and at least one reflux tank, the M cooling tanks are connected in series in sequence, the inlet of the first cooling tank is connected to the outlet of the manifold, the outlet of the Mth cooling tank or the outlet of the reflux tank connected to the Mth cooling tank is connected to the inlet of the first adsorption tank, a cooling medium is arranged in each cooling tank, and M is an integer greater than or equal to 1; the reflux tank is arranged at the outlet of at least one cooling tank, and the installation height of the reflux tank is lower than the height of the cooling tank outlet.
The energy storage system according to claim 7 is characterized in that the thermal runaway flue gas treatment device also includes a sensing unit; the sensing unit is arranged at the outlet of the manifold and is used to output a signal to the battery management system when the battery thermally runs away.
The energy storage system according to claim 8 is characterized in that the cooling unit and the adsorption unit are arranged outside the box.
The energy storage system according to claim 9 is characterized in that the cooling unit and the adsorption unit are arranged in an integrated cabinet, the ignition unit is arranged outside the integrated cabinet, and the integrated cabinet is arranged on the side wall of the box body.
The energy storage system according to claim 10 is characterized in that the ignition unit includes an exhaust pipe and an igniter; the inlet of the exhaust pipe is connected to the outlet of the Nth adsorption tank, the trigger unit is arranged on the exhaust pipe, and the igniter is arranged at the outlet end of the exhaust pipe for igniting the thermal runaway flue gas discharged from the exhaust pipe.
The energy storage system according to claim 11 is characterized in that the igniter is a pulse igniter, and a flame arrester is also provided on the exhaust pipe, and the flame arrester is a pipeline flame arrester.
The energy storage system according to claim 1 is characterized in that a plurality of batteries are arranged in a box body, and the pressure relief ports of the plurality of batteries are connected to the inlets of the plurality of pressure relief pipes in a one-to-one correspondence, and the outlets of the plurality of pressure relief pipes are all connected to the manifold; the battery thermal runaway flue gas treatment device comprises a cooling unit, a reflux unit and an ignition unit; the cooling unit comprises N cooling tanks connected in series in sequence, each cooling tank is provided with a cooling medium, the inlet of the first cooling tank is connected to the outlet of the manifold, and N is an integer greater than or equal to 1; the reflux unit comprises at least one reflux tank, the reflux tank is arranged at the outlet of at least one cooling tank, and the installation height of the reflux tank is lower than the height of the cooling tank outlet; the ignition unit is arranged outside the box body and connected to the outlet of the Nth cooling tank or the outlet of the reflux tank connected to the Nth cooling tank; the liquid medium generated in the cooling tank after the thermal runaway flue gas is cooled by the N cooling tanks in sequence flows back to the reflux tank, and the residual thermal runaway flue gas is ignited outside the box through the ignition unit.
The energy storage system according to claim 13 is characterized in that the cooling unit and the reflux unit are arranged outside the box.
The energy storage system according to claim 14 is characterized in that the cooling unit and the reflux unit are arranged on the same side wall of the box body.
The energy storage system according to claim 15, wherein the cooling unit and the reflux unit are arranged in a collection The ignition unit is arranged outside the integrated cabinet, and the integrated cabinet is arranged on the side wall of the box body.
The energy storage system according to claim 16 is characterized in that a partition is provided in the box body, and the partition divides the inner cavity of the box body into a battery compartment and an equipment compartment, a plurality of batteries are arranged in the battery compartment, the cooling unit and the reflux unit are arranged in the equipment compartment; and the ignition unit is arranged outside the equipment compartment.
The energy storage system according to any one of claims 13 to 17 is characterized in that the N cooling tanks are connected in series in sequence through hoses.
The energy storage system according to claim 18 is characterized in that the cooling medium is ceramic balls, honeycomb ceramic bodies or silicon dioxide.
The energy storage system according to claim 19 is characterized in that there is at least one ignition unit, including an exhaust pipe, a trigger and an igniter, the inlet of the exhaust pipe is connected to the outlet of the Nth cooling tank or the outlet of the reflux tank connected to the Nth cooling tank, the trigger is arranged on the exhaust pipe, and is used to start the ignition unit when the thermal runaway flue gas passes through the exhaust pipe, and the igniter is arranged at the outlet end of the exhaust pipe, and is used to ignite the thermal runaway flue gas discharged from the exhaust pipe.
The energy storage system according to claim 20 is characterized in that the igniter is a pulse igniter.
The energy storage system according to claim 21 is characterized in that a flame arrester is also provided on the exhaust pipe, and the flame arrester is a pipeline flame arrester.
The energy storage system according to claim 22 is characterized in that the trigger is a magnetic switch.