An optimization study on the performance of air-cooling system for energy storage battery packs using a novel thermoelectric coupling model

Energy storage batteries generate a considerable amount of heat during the charging and discharging process. If the excess heat is not discharged in a timely manner, it can pose potential safety hazards. In this study, a novel thermoelectric coupling model is used to numerically simulate the heat generation process of energy storage battery packs. Then, the impact of airflow organization and battery arrangement on the efficiency of air-cooling system for the energy storage battery packs is investigated. The results show that the discharge multiplier has a greater influence on the battery heat release, with the increase of the discharge multiplier, the heat generation of the battery increased significantly. In addition, the cooling efficiency of the battery pack is contingent upon the direction of the airflow through the cooling air inlet and outlet. When the airflow direction is aligned with the length of the battery, the cooling effect is enhanced, whereas when the airflow direction is aligned with the width of the battery, the cooling effect is diminished. Furthermore, the arrangement of battery packs also has great impact on the effect of cooling system. The cooling effect is much better as the battery packs are in align arrangement, in comparison to the staggered and linear arrangements of battery packs, and it can be further improved by installing a deflector plate at the top of the battery pack. However, when both the cooling effect and battery energy density are considered simultaneously, the staggered arrangement of battery packs is the most optimal choice. In this study, the optimal organization for heat dissipation was achieved through the staggered arrangement of the battery cells, with a staggering distance of 10 mm and a cell spacing of 5 mm. At this juncture, the maximum temperature of the battery pack is diminished by 0.5 %, and the maximum temperature difference is reduced by 4.2 % in comparison to the pre-optimization condition with a staggered distance of 0 mm and a cell spacing of 5 mm.