Performance Assessment of Serpentine and L-Shaped Cold Plate Battery Thermal Management for Cylindrical Lithium-Ion Battery Module

Abstract

The operation of Lithium-Ion Battery at high C-rates generates enormous heat resulting in higher temperatures which may affect its performance, cycle life, and safety. This necessitates the regulation on temperatures through effective thermal management. The present study evaluates a battery thermal management system (BTMS), viz. a serpentine and L-shaped mini-channel cold plates using nanofluid coolant combined with phase change material (PCM) subjected to a constant discharge of 80 A (8 C) and US06 drive schedule. A 4S4P LIB module rated 0.147 kWh, consisting of cylindrical cells, was chosen for the investigation. The thermal and electrical governing equations of the MSMD battery module were numerically solved using ANSYS Fluent solver. It is observed that a laminar flow at a Reynolds number of 1380 with the Al₂O₃ nanofluid having concentration in the range of 0.02–0.035 is effective in achieving lower battery surface temperatures and decreased pumping losses. The serpentine cold plate with the PCM effectively dissipated nearly 91% of the generated heat, but it experienced a 50% higher pressure drop compared to the L-shaped configuration. The study emphasizes that both the heat dissipation and the pressure loss in the cooling system play a vital role in the design and choice of BTM.