Experimental and numerical study on a novel hybrid battery thermal management system integrated forced-air convection and phase change material

Highlights: • A novel hybrid battery thermal management is proposed. • The mathematical model is established and then validated by the experiments. • The effectiveness of the proposed management system is proved experimentally. • The space of the proposed system is optimized via the mathematical model. -- Abstract: A novel hybrid battery thermal management system, combining air-forced convection with phase change material, is proposed. The effectiveness of the system is proved experimentally. The maximum temperature difference and the maximum temperature are controlled within the optimum range in the proposed thermal management system even though the dynamic charge/discharge current rate is 4 C rate. Meanwhile, the thermal performance is also compared under the passive and active strategy. The result shows that the thermal performance under the active mode is obviously superior to that under the passive mode. Comparing with the passive mode, the maximum temperature difference and the maximum temperature in the active mode are reduced 1.2 °C and 16 °C under 3 C rate, respectively. Moreover, the mathematical model, based on the three-dimension heat transfer model coupled with the electrochemical model, is carried out and then validated with experimental data. Taking advantage of the mathematical model, the space of designed structures is further optimized.