Pouch Cell Case Laminate with Integrated Thermal Management Topologies

With increased adoption of pouch-type battery cells in electrified vehicles there are evolving challenges for cell-to-array battery design. Trends of higher capacity and energy density as well as demands for reduced cost inspire integration opportunities of traditionally discrete functional components. Focusing on how battery cell active materials are packaged, specifically the polymer/aluminum laminate case, the formation of thermal transfer features at the pouch case surface would increase heat transfer efficiency and simplify the battery system by reducing components, weight, and volume. Designed topologies, from localized pin fins and straight channels to complex flow fields (Table 1), have been demonstrated at the pouch case laminate enabling a new design space at the cell level. This presentation will explore prototype designs, fabrication methods, and improvement areas for this technology. Table 1 - Extrusion roller press designs and demonstrated prototypes for variable spaced channel arrays, pin fin topologies, and flow field patterns Figure 1