Hybrid metallic phase change materials based battery thermal management system embedded with circular hollow fins for higher discharge rates

Battery thermal management systems (BTMS) require advanced and effective solutions for fast charging/discharging scenarios. The application of phase change materials (PCMs) is one possible solution. However, their limited thermal conductivity restricts their potential applications. In this paper a hybrid metallic PCM based BTMS with liquid cooling embedded with circular hollow fins design is proposed. The BTMS aims to limit the problem of lower thermal conductivity of organic and composite PCMs under higher discharge rates with lower power consumption. The design model is validated with experimental and simulations results. The results shows that the proposed hybrid model have advantages over liquid, PCM, and hybrid based BTMS interterms of thermal conductivity, heat dissipation and power consumption. The performance of liquid metal based PCMs were also compared with conventional organic and composite PCMs. Additionally, the effect of PCM thickness, mass flow rate, plate thickness and discharge rates are studied to evaluated the systems performance. The results showed that the hybrid metallic PCM based BTMS can effectively control the battery temperature, enhance heat dissipation and influences hollow fins to achieve a lightweight system with improved channel flow path with lower power consumption and under high discharge rates. The hybrid-BTMS model reduces the battery temperature when compared with liquid, PCM and hybrid based BTMS, under 9C discharge rates. The proposed design offers an effective and lightweight solution for fast charging and discharging applications.