Computational Modelling of Heat Transfer through Aluminium Metal Foams for LiFePO4 Battery Cooling

Abstract

Temperature is crucial for battery pack durability and power. Folded fin and serpentine channel cooling methods are mostly used to cool the pack. However, fluid absorption during cooling can reduce capacity and cause downstream temperatures to be higher than upstream. Consistent cooling is vital to prevent temperature variation and increase battery pack lifespan. This work is concerned with the computational study of heat dissipation from open-cell aluminium metal foam for cooling LiFePO4 battery packs. The battery module consists of six pieces of pouch cell and three pieces of the aluminium foam heat sink. In the present study, aluminium foams are positioned between the LiFePO4 battery modules that are arranged in a vertical manner. Thermal interaction between the battery module and aluminum foam was studied. The effect of pore density on heat dissipation performance at different mass flow rates was explored. It has been discovered that aluminium foam with suitable porosity and pore density can efficiently cool the LiFePO4 battery pack. This paper provides a theoretical framework for designing a thermal management system for lithium- ion batteries using aluminium foam. Metal foam cooling is an established technique for thermal management of Lithiumion batteries in electric vehicles. The present study aims to analyze heat transfer through aluminium metal foams for vertically aligned LiFePO4 battery pack cooling. The Darcy extended Forchheimer (DEF) model examines fluid flow through metallic foams, using the local thermal non-equilibrium model to determine heat transfer. The impact of the density of pores in the aluminium foam on the average wall temperature and temperature difference along the battery surface is determined. The variation of heat transfer of lithium-ion battery modules for different mass flow rates is also studied. The results indicate that utilizing aluminium foam as a heat transfer medium for battery modules significantly enhances their thermal management performance.