Conformal Heat Exchanger for Battery Cell Stack

• US 20110189525A1
• Filed: 01/27/2011
• Published: 08/04/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/02/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dana Canada Corporation
• Original Assignee: Dana Canada Corporation
• Inventors: Burgers, John G., Kozdras, Mark S., Martin, Michael A., Palanchon, Hervé
• Granted Patent: US 9,780,421 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 429/120
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/613 Cooling or keeping cold
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/615 Heating or keeping warm
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/653 characterised by electrically insulating or thermally conductive materials
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/6551 Surfaces specially adapted for heat dissipation or radiation, e.g. fins or coatings
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/6557 arranged between the cells
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/659 by heat storage or buffering, e.g. heat capacity or liquid-solid phase changes or transition
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 Energy storage using batteries

Abstract

A heat exchanger structure for use in a battery unit that comprises a first battery stack comprising a plurality of battery cells and a second battery stack comprising a plurality of battery cells. The heat exchanger structure is disposed between opposing surfaces of the first battery stack and the second battery stack and defines one or more fluid flow passages, the heat exchanger structure being dimensionally compliant to compress under expansion of the first and second battery stacks and expand under subsequent contraction of the first and second battery stacks.

Claims

1. A battery unit comprising:

a first battery stack comprising a plurality of battery modules, each of the battery modules housing one or more battery cells, the plurality of battery modules of the first battery stack defining a first battery stack side;

a second battery stack comprising a plurality of battery modules, each of the battery modules housing one or more battery cells, the plurality of battery modules of the second battery stack defining a second battery stack side that is spaced apart from and opposing the first battery stack side; and

a heat exchanger structure disposed between the first battery stack and the second battery stack and defining one or a plurality of fluid flow passages, the heat exchanger structure having a first side contacting the first battery stack side across a plurality of the battery modules and a second side contacting the second battery stack side across a plurality of the battery modules, the heat exchanger structure being elastically deformable to compress under expansion of the first and second battery stacks and expand under subsequent contraction of the first and second battery stacks.

2. The battery unit of claim 1 wherein the heat exchanger structure comprises a corrugated fin plate having alternating peaks and valleys defining the fluid flow passages therebetween, at least some of the peaks contacting the first battery stack side and at least some of the valleys contacting the second battery stack side to facilitate heat exchange between the fin plate and the first and second battery stacks.

3. The battery unit of claim 2 wherein each peak has a respective flat surface contacting the first battery stack side and each valley has a respective flat side contacting the second battery stack side.

4. The battery unit of claim 3 wherein the fin plate corrugations are cantered such that at least some spaces between the peaks contacting the first battery stack side are aligned with respective spaces between valleys contacting the second battery stack side.

5. The battery unit of claim 2 wherein the fin plate is an off-set strip fin plate.

6. The battery unit of claim 1 wherein the heat exchanger structure comprises a fin plate defining rows of parallel semi-cylindrical portions joined by planar portions, at least some of the semi-cylindrical portions contacting the first battery stack side and at least some of the planar portions contacting the second battery stack side to facilitate heat exchange between the fin plate and the first and second battery stacks.

7. The battery unit of claim 1 wherein the heat exchanger structure comprises a corrugated first fin plate having alternating peaks and valleys and a deformable corrugated second fin plate having alternating peaks and valleys the first and second fin plates being located adjacent to each other with a plurality of the peaks of the first fin plate contacting the first battery stack side and a plurality of the peaks of the second fin plate contacting the second battery stack side.

8. The battery unit of claim 7 wherein the first fin plate and the second fin plate are arranged in back-to-back alignment with the valleys of the first fin plate being aligned with respective valleys of the second fin plate.

9. The battery unit of claim 7 wherein an intermediate plate is located between the first fin plate and the second fin plate.

10. The battery unit of claim 9 wherein the intermediate plate comprises an active heating element.

11. The battery unit of claim 9 wherein the intermediate plate comprises fluid conduits for conducting a fluid through the intermediate plate.

12. The battery unit of claim 9 wherein the intermediate plate encloses a phase change material having a phase change temperature falling within a normal operating temperature range of the battery unit.

13. The battery unit of claim 9 wherein the intermediate plate includes one or more extending portions that extend beyond an outer edge of the battery stacks.

14. The battery unit of claim 7 wherein protrusions extend from the first and second battery stack sides, the fin plates being positioned so that their respective valleys receive the protrusions.

15. The battery unit of claim 7 wherein the fin plates are formed from graphite with a conformal structure located therebetween.

16. The battery unit of claim 7 wherein the first and second fin plates are each elastically deformable.

17. The battery unit of claim 7 wherein the fin plates have valleys and peaks with flat contact surfaces or are sinusoidal fin plates.

18. The battery unit of claim 1 wherein a non-electrically conductive material is located at contact surfaces between the fin plate and the battery stack sides.

19. The battery unit of claim 1 wherein cooperating interlock portions are provided on the heat exchanger structure and the battery stacks for limiting movement of the heat exchanger structure relative to the battery stacks.

20. A heat exchanger structure for use in an power producing unit that comprises a first stack comprising a plurality of power producing modules defining a first stack side and a second stack comprising a plurality of power producing modules defining a second stack side that is spaced apart from and opposing the first stack side, the heat exchanger structure being disposed between the opposing first stack side and second stack side and having a first side contacting the first stack side across a plurality of the power producing modules and a second side contacting the second stack side across a plurality of the power producing modules, the heat exchanger structure being dimensionally compliant to compress under expansion of the first and second stacks and expand under subsequent contraction of the first and second stacks.