Performance investigation of integrated thermal management system based on a pumped two-phase cooling system for electric vehicles

The pumped two-phase cooling system has been proven to be effective in dissipating battery heat. However, the system configuration and performance of the integrated thermal management system(ITMS) based on the pumped two-phase cooling system still lacks in-depth investigation. In this paper, a novel integration system configuration coupling the pumped two-phase cooling system and air-conditioning system for EVs is developed. A simulation platform is established for the proposed integrated system. Two cooling modes named as radiator cooling mode and chiller cooling mode are numerically investigated under different operating parameters. The results showed that the pack average temperature raised with moist air mass flow rate, compressor speed, ambient temperature and discharge rate. The temperature non-uniformity was aggravated when the R1233zd mass flow rate, the moist air mass flow rate and the compressor speed increased. This aggravation would be more significant with the increasing discharge rate. The energy consumption of radiator cooling mode was only around 3 % of that of chiller cooling mode when achieving the same pack average temperature at an ambient temperature of 15 °C. While, the chiller cooling mode was more adaptable to harsh conditions. The pack average temperature can be used as an index to determine the system cooling mode. The up limit of the discharge rate in RCM were 1.8C, 1.6C, 1.4C and 1.2C for the ambient temperature at 16 °C, 20 °C, 24 °C and 26 °C, respectively. The novel findings of this work are intended to provide a theoretical tool for the optimal design and control strategy of the ITMS based on the pumped two-phase cooling system.