Volume 40: Energy Transitions toward Carbon Neutrality: Part III

Performance optimization of battery cooling system based on phase-change latent heat energy storage Mingyun Luo, Ziye Ling, Xiaoming Fang, Zhengguo Zhang*

Abstract

Lithium battery energy storage system (ESS) needs high-power refrigeration equipment to maintain a comfortable operating temperature to ensure the operating performance and long-life of the batteries. But this dramatically increases the size and cost of the system. Here, we proposed a battery cooling system coupled with phase-change thermal energy storage (PHTES) unit. The PHTES unit pre-cools the cooling fluid, greatly reducing the refrigerating capacity of the chiller, thus reducing the volume and cost of the refrigeration system. In addition, we have established the lumped heat model of PHTES unit and battery liquid cooling system. Based on this model, we can optimize the storage capacity of PHTES unit and cooling capacity of chiller, thus minimizing the energy consumption and cost of the system. This work proposes a low energy consumption and low-cost thermal management method for battery ESS, and provides a simple and accurate model for the optimization of thermal management system.

Keywords Battery cooling, thermal management, phase change, energy storage