Battery Arrangement Analysis for Electric Vehicle using Air Cooling

Abstract

Effective thermal management is paramount for sustaining the optimal operational temperature of batteries in Electrical Vehicles (EV), thereby enhancing their longevity and ensuring both safety and performance. Air cooling, while being lightweight and economically feasible, frequently encounters difficulties in achieving adequate cooling efficacy, particularly under conditions of elevated load. Consequently, the optimization of battery pack design alongside air cooling configurations becomes imperative to tackle these challenges, thereby ensuring reliability, safety, and efficiency in electric vehicle applications. The objective of this research is to employ Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analysis to ascertain the optimal arrangement of batteries for the enhancement of thermal performance and to pinpoint the ideal inlet location necessary to attain maximum thermal efficacy. The analysis evaluates square, staggered, and other innovative configurations to determine arrangements that optimize cooling efficiency and mitigate hotspots. The findings indicate that the battery configuration with a Staggered Arrangement produced the most favourable battery performance while maintaining uniformity in the temperature differential among cells within the arrangement. It is anticipated that the results of this investigation will facilitate the optimization of the battery thermal management system in electric vehicles, consequently enhancing battery lifespan and performance.