Paraffin and paraffin/aluminum foam composite phase change material heat storage experimental study based on thermal management of Li-ion battery

The temperature of battery modules in electric vehicles (EVs) must be controlled adequately to keep within a specified range for optimum performance. The paraffin/aluminum foam composite phase change material (PCM) was investigated experimentally. The experimental results indicate that paraffin/aluminum foam composite PCM has an ideal cooling effect in limiting the temperature rise of the Li-ion battery during the discharge process. The heat storage properties of pure paraffin and the composite PCM are also experimentally studied. The inner temperature distribution of the foam and paraffin is monitored during the melting process. The addition of aluminum foam can largely improve the effective thermal conductivity of the PCM, although its existence suppresses the local natural convection. The experimental results indicate that the use of aluminum foam can speed up the melting process and improve the temperature uniformity of the PCM. When the heat fluxes are 7000 W/m2 and 12,000 W/m2, the heat storage time of the composite PCM is 73.6% and 74.4% of that of pure paraffin, respectively.