Graphene or h-BN paraffin composite structures for the thermal management of Li-ion batteries: A multiscale investigation

TL;DR

This study develops multiscale models to evaluate how paraffin composites with graphene or h-BN improve thermal management in lithium-ion batteries, revealing that increased thermal conductivity does not significantly enhance cooling performance.

Contribution

It introduces a combined atomistic-continuum multiscale modeling approach to assess nanocomposite thermal conductivity and battery heat management, providing insights into phase change material design.

Findings

Thermal conductivity of paraffin nanocomposites can be significantly increased.

Enhanced thermal conductivity does not lead to substantial performance improvement.

The models aid in designing better phase change materials for electronic cooling.

Abstract

The reliability and safety of lithium-ion batteries can be affected by overheating issues. Phase change materials like paraffin due to their large heat capacities are among the best solutions for the thermal management of batteries. In this investigation, multiscale modelling techniques were developed to explore the efficiency in the thermal management of rechargeable batteries through employing the paraffin composite structures. A combined atomistic-continuum multiscale modelling was conducted to evaluate the thermal conductivity of paraffin reinforced with graphene or hexagonal boron-nitride nanosheet additives. In addition, heat generation during a battery service was simulated using the Newman's electrochemical model. Finally, three-dimensional heat transfer models were constructed to investigate the effectiveness of various paraffin composite structures in the thermal management of a battery system. Interestingly, it was found that the thermal conductivity of paraffin nanocomposites can be enhanced by several times but that does not yield significant improvement in the batteries thermal management over the pure paraffin. The acquired findings can be useful not only for the modelling of nanocomposites but more importantly for the improvement of phase change materials design to enhance the thermal management of rechargeable batteries and other electronic devices.