Thermal Management in Batteries
The capacity, performance, and service life of rechargeable batteries are essential for the market success of battery-powered solutions. For all kinds of applications – such as Battery Electric Vehicles (BEV), Electric Bikes or Scooters, Solar powered Solutions, Off-grid Power Supply Systems, and more – the integration of the battery into the overall system is the key.
In general, batteries are classified by their chemical composition. The most common types of batteries are lithium-, lead-, and nickel-based systems. Lithium-ion batteries are the battery of choice for portable devices and electric powertrains due to their high cycle stability during charging or discharging and high power density.
To perform well in the final application, the battery’s temperature plays a vital role while operating, i.e., during its charging and discharging cycles. The optimum operating temperature of Lithium-ion batteries lies between 15 and 35 °C. When operated at temperatures lower than 15 °C, the battery gets automatically heated up at the expense of stored electrical energy. This is because of the increased internal cell resistance at cold temperatures, which leads to long heat-up times. As a result, the battery gets permanently deteriorates in the process.
If it’s too cold, the entire operating performance and battery life are inhibited – a shortfall that cannot be made up in the course of time. The same counts for hot summer days when the battery needs to be cooled down. For operating a Li-ion battery Outside the ideal temperature range (15-35 °C), proper and effective thermal management is required to improve efficiency and avoid permanent damage.
