Numerical Investigation of the Effects of Air Flow Geometry and Reynolds Number in Cooling Systems of Lithium-Ion Batteries

In this study, two factors affecting the cooling performance of lithium-ion batteries have been selected and investigated using numerical methods. They have been determined as airflow geometry design and different Reynolds numbers. First, the differences between a classical flow path design (Z channel) with air inlets and outlets in the same direction and an alternative design (U channel) with air inlets and outlets in different directions have been evaluated. To understand the effect of the turbulent properties of the fluid in both designs, the results of the analyses performed using different Reynolds numbers (Re=4000, 6000, 8000, 10000, 15000) have been compared with each other. As a result, it has been observed that the U-channel design provided more homogeneous cooling on the battery surfaces and that the heat transfer is at higher values. In addition, it was observed that the Nusselt number increased with the increase in the Reynolds numbers used in the analyses. This study provides important data to understand the effects of airflow geometry and Reynolds number on the design of lithium-ion battery cooling systems and contributes to the development of optimized cooling solutions.