Evaluation of a novel indirect liquid-cooling system for energy storage batteries via mechanical vapor recompression and falling film evaporation

To achieve superior energy efficiency and temperature uniformity in cooling system for energy storage batteries, this paper proposes a novel indirect liquid-cooling system based on mechanical vapor recompression falling film evaporation (MVR-FFE-ILCS). Simulation model for MVR module and FFE module are developed, based on which thermodynamic performance and temperature uniformity are evaluated against conventional cooling schemes. The results of MVR module indicate that the novel system offers substantial energy savings, with up to 76.7 % efficiency gains over the reference air conditioning cooling system. Coefficient of performance (COP) and specific cooling capacity reach to 14.1 and 2438.7 kJ/kg, respectively. Higher cooling temperature and lower compression temperature rise can reduce the system's energy consumption. FFE module's findings reveal that the proposed structure outperforms the conventional non-phase-change liquid cooling plate in temperature uniformity, achieving a maximum temperature of 37.20 degrees C (a 7.0 % decrease) and an average maximum temperature difference of 2.53 degrees C (a 15.3 % reduction). Higher cooling water flow velocity and lower cooling temperature are beneficial for the temperature uniformity of battery pack, with a cooling temperature controlled below 35 degrees C. The integrated analysis confirms the superior performance of the MVR-FFE-ILCS, presenting the potential of the novel system for practical application in energy storage.