Design, Development and Thermal Analysis of Reusable Li-Ion Battery Module for Future Mobile and Stationary Applications

open access articleThe performance, energy storage capacity, safety, and lifetime of lithium-ion battery cells of different chemistries are very sensitive to operating and environmental temperatures. The cells generate heat by current passing through their internal resistances, and chemical reactions can generate additional, sometimes uncontrollable, heat if the temperature within the cells reaches the trigger temperature. Therefore, a high-performance battery cooling system that maintains cells as close to the ideal temperature as possible is needed to enable the highest possible discharge current rates while still providing a sufficient safety margin. This paper presents a novel design, preliminary development, and results for an inexpensive reusable, liquid-cooled, modular, hexagonal battery module that may be suitable for some mobile and stationary applications that have high charge and or discharge rate requirements. The battery temperature rise was measured experimentally for a six parallel 18650 cylindrical cell demonstrator module over complete discharge cycles at discharge rates of 1C, 2C and 3C. The measured temperature rises at the hottest point in the cells, at the anode terminal, were found to be 6, 17 and 22 °C, respectively. The thermal resistance of the system was estimated to be below 0.2 K/W at a coolant flow rate of 0.001 Kg/s. The proposed liquid cooled module appeared to be an effective solution for maintaining cylindrical Li-ion cells close to their optimum working temperature

Rational design on materials for developing next generation Lithium-ion secondary battery

research groups involved: 1. Emerging Technologies Research Centre, De Montfort University, Leicester, United Kingdom 2. Engineering and Energy, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Australia 3. Malaviya National Institute of Technology, Jaipur, India 4.School of Chemistry, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT, United Kingdom The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link.Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) gained global attention as the most promising energy storing technology for the mobile and stationary applications due to its high energy density, low self-discharge property, long life span, high open-circuit voltage and nearly zero memory effects. However, to meet the growing energy demand, this energy storage technology must be further explored and developed for high power applications. The conventional lithium-ion batteries mainly based on Li-ion intercalation mechanism cannot offer high-charge capacities. To transcend this situation, alloy-type anode and conversion-type anode materials are gaining popularity. This review article focuses on the historical and recent advancements in cathode and anode materials including the future scope of the lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide (NMC) cathode. Equal emphasis is dedicated in this review to discuss about lithium based and beyond lithium-based anode materials. This review additionally focuses on the role of technological advancements in nanomaterials as a performance improvement technique for new novel anode and cathode materials. Also, this review offers rational cell and material design, perspectives and future challenges to promote the application of these materials in practical lithium-ion batteries

Mechanically Tunable Curcumin Incorporated Polyurethane Hydrogels as Potential Biomaterials

We report here on the one-pot synthesis and characterization of curcumin incorporated polyethylene glycol–polyurethane (PU-CUR) hydrogels using PEG-4000, 4, 4′-methylenebis (cyclohexyl isocyanate), curcumin in the presence of a cross-linker, 1,2,6 hexanetriol (HT). Besides the physical entrapment, curcumin also provides a partial cross-linking in the 3-D structure of the hydrogel. The degree of swelling in hydrogels could be controlled by varying the amount of HT as well as curcumin. The structural characterization of hydrogels was performed using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, high-resolution mass spectrometry, UV and fluorescence spectroscopy. The wide-angle X-ray scattering studies revealed the existence of crystalline domains of PEG, and the small-angle X-ray scattering studies showed the presence of lamellar microstructures. Porous structure in the hydrogel was created by cryogenic treatment and lyophilization. Scanning electron microscopy and microcomputed tomography imaging of hydrogels showed the presence of interconnected pores. The mechanical strength of the hydrogels was measured using a universal testing machine. The observed tensile and breaking compression strengths for the equilibrium swollen gels were found to be in the range of 0.22–0.73 MPa and 1.65–4.6 MPa, respectively. Detailed in vitro biological experiments showed the biocompatibility of gels, cytostatic dosage of curcumin, selective toxicity toward cancer cell lines, and antibacterial property. These gels show promising applications as scaffolds and implants in tissue engineering