Isothermal temperature control for battery testing and battery model parameterization

The hybrid/ electric vehicle (H/EV) market is very dependent on battery models. Battery models inform cell and battery pack design, critical in online battery management systems and can be used as predictive tools to maximise the lifetime of a battery pack. Battery models require parameterization, through experimentation. Temperature affects every aspect of a battery’s operation and must therefore be closely controlled throughout all battery experiments. Today, the private-sector prefers climate chambers for experimental thermal control. However, evidence suggests that climate chambers are unable to adequately control the surface temperature of a battery under test. In this study, laboratory apparatus is introduced that controls the temperature of any exposed surface of a battery through conduction. Pulse discharge tests, temperature step change tests and driving cycle tests are used to compare the performance of this conductive temperature control apparatus (CTCA) against a climate chamber across a range of scenarios. The CTCA outperforms the climate chamber in all tests. In CTCA testing, the rate of heat removal from the cell is increased by two orders of magnitude. The CTCA eliminates error due to cell surface temperature rise, which is inherent to climate chamber testing due to insufficient heat removal rates from a cell under test. The CTCA can reduce the time taken to conduct entropic parameterization of a cell by almost 10 days, a 70% reduction in the presented case. Presently, the H/EV industry’s reliance on climate chambers is impacting the accuracy of all battery models. The industry must move away from the flawed concept of convective cooling during battery parameterization.