Experimental temperature distributions in a prismatic lithium-ion battery at varying conditions

In this paper, temperature contours are presented for a prismatic lithium-ion battery at 1C, 2C, 3C, and 4C discharge rates and different boundary conditions (cooling/operating/bath temperature) of 5 °C, 15 °C, 25 °C, and 35 °C. The active (water cooling) cooling system is designed and developed based on a prismatic lithium-ion battery using dual cold plates. The battery discharges at constant current rates of 20 Amp, 40 Amp, 60 Amp, and 80 Amp, and the experimental temperature contours are then plotted between the beginning and end of discharge cycle. The results show that a higher temperature distribution is observed over the entire surface of the battery for 4C at 35 °C and a lower temperature distribution is noted for 1C at 5 °C. Furthermore, it is observed that increased discharge rates between 1C and 4C and increased boundary conditions (BCs) between 5 °C and 35 °C result in increased temperature contour of the battery.