Experimental study of two organic phase change materials in cylindrical containers for battery module thermal management: A comparative analysis

Thermal runaway in battery Electric Vehicles (EV) is one of the most significant threats to their safety and overall performance. In this study, the use of saturated fatty acid and paraffin wax as phase change materials stored separately in a battery-like container, which acts as a thermal absorber for heat dissipation management, is analyzed. The melting characteristics between these two materials are relatively different, as shown from the Differential Scanning Calorimetry results. The fatty acid used in this study has a narrow melting point with its peak at 56oC, while the paraffin mixture has a wide range starting from as low as 37oC. The effect of such different profiles is translated to the difference in the measured temperature profiles. In passive thermal management based on PCM alone, the latent heat capacity is more important than having a melting range when the amount of PCM as heat absorber is strictly limited. However, when the PCM is evenly distributed, the paraffin tubes would have a better thermal profile than the fatty acid ones. Meanwhile, when the air blower is operated hence forming a hybrid thermal management system, there is almost no significant difference between the two PCM under investigation.