Back to results
US 12,697,852 B2Granted
Mitigating airlock in cooling channels for large area cooling systems for batteries
AssigneeGM Global Technology Operations LLC
InventorsZhenwen Hu, Kristopher A. Thor, Jian Yao, Chengwu Duan, Madhusudan Raghavan
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A cooling system includes a cooling channel having a nominal width and N longitudinal portions, where N is an integer greater than one. An inlet is connected to an end of a first one of the N longitudinal portions of the cooling channel. An outlet is connected to an end of a last one of the N longitudinal portions of the cooling channel. At least one U turn location connects ends of at least two middle ones of the N longitudinal portions of the cooling channel. The at least one U turn location is tapered.
Claims16
A cooling system comprising:
- a cooling channel having a nominal width;
- N longitudinal portions of the cooling channel, where N is an integer greater than one;
- an inlet connected to an end of a first one of the N longitudinal portions of the cooling channel;
- an outlet connected to an end of a last one of the N longitudinal portions of the cooling channel;
- and
- at least one U-turn location within the cooling channel connecting ends of at least two middle ones of the N longitudinal portions of the cooling channel,
- wherein the cooling channel at the at least one U-turn location is tapered such that the cooling channel includes a reduced channel width at the at least one U-turn location relative to the nominal width,
- wherein the N longitudinal portions of the cooling channel are arranged over one another in a vertical direction,
- wherein the cooling channel includes an upper cooling channel, and wherein only a bottom side of the upper cooling channel at the at least one U-turn location is tapered such that the reduced channel width of the upper cooling channel progressively narrows towards an upper side of the upper cooling channel at the at least one U-turn location,
- wherein the cooling channel includes a lower cooling channel, and wherein only a bottom side of the lower cooling channel at the at least one U-turn location is tapered such that the reduced channel width of the lower cooling channel progressively narrows towards an upper side of the lower cooling channel at the at least one U-turn location.
7 more elements
A cooling system comprising:
- a cooling channel having a nominal width;
- N longitudinal portions of the cooling channel extending longitudinally, where N is an integer greater than one;
- an inlet connected to an end of a first one of the N longitudinal portions of the cooling channel;
- an outlet connected to an end of a last one of the N longitudinal portions of the cooling channel;
- at least one U-turn location within the cooling channel connecting ends of at least two middle ones of the N longitudinal portions of the cooling channel;
- and
- B annular baffles arranged in within the cooling channel at the at least one U-turn location where B is an integer greater than zero, wherein the B annular baffles divide the cooling channel at the at least one U-turn location into subchannels arranged in a nested configuration of parallel channels,
- wherein the cooling channel includes an upper cooling channel and a lower cooling channel,
- wherein only a bottom side of the upper cooling channel at the at least one U-turn location is tapered towards an upper side of the upper cooling channel at the at least one U-turn location to provide a reduced channel width that progressively narrows from the bottom side toward the upper side of the upper cooling channel,
- wherein only a bottom side of the lower cooling channel at the at least one U-turn location is tapered towards an upper side of the lower cooling channel at the at least one U-turn location to provide a reduced channel width that progressively narrows from the bottom side toward the upper side of the lower cooling channel.
7 more elements
A cooling system comprising:
- a cooling channel having a nominal width;
- N longitudinal portions of the cooling channel, where N is an integer greater than one;
- an inlet connected to an end of a first one of the N longitudinal portions of the cooling channel;
- an outlet connected to an end of a last one of the N longitudinal portions of the cooling channel;
- and
- at least one U-turn location connecting ends of at least two middle ones of the N longitudinal portions of the cooling channel,
- wherein only a bottom side of an upper cooling channel of the cooling channel at the at least one U-turn location is tapered towards an upper side of the upper cooling channel at the at least one U-turn location,
- wherein only a bottom side of a lower cooling channel of the cooling channel at the at least one U-turn location is tapered towards an upper side of the lower cooling channel at the at least one U-turn location, and
- wherein a cross-sectional area of the cooling channel at the at least one U-turn location progressively decreases from the bottom side to the upper side of the upper cooling channel and from the bottom side to the upper side of the lower cooling channel such that the cooling channel is tapered at the at least one U-turn location in a range from 30% to 70% from the nominal width.
6 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.