10 Questions on Thermal Management Basics of New Energy Vehicles

1. Overview of Thermal Management System for New Energy Vehicles

Automotive thermal management refers to the overall control of vehicle heat and ambient heat from the perspective of the system and the vehicle to ensure that each component operates within the optimal temperature range. Its goal is to ensure vehicle safety, improve economy, power, and energy conservation and environmental protection performance.

Traditional automotive thermal management mainly includes the following aspects:

1. Engine cooling: The heat generated by the engine needs to be dissipated through the cooling system to keep the engine within a suitable operating temperature range. The cooling system usually includes components such as a water pump, radiator, coolant and fan.

2. Transmission cooling: Automatic transmission or dual clutch transmission also requires a cooling system to control its operating temperature to ensure normal operation of the transmission. The transmission cooling system is usually interconnected with the engine cooling system.

3. Air conditioning system thermal management: The vehicle's air conditioning system needs to cool or heat the air to provide a comfortable driving environment. The air conditioning system usually includes components such as a compressor, condenser, evaporator, and air conditioning control unit.

In the field of new energy vehicles, thermal management is more complex and requires consideration of thermal management of electric motors, battery systems, and passenger compartment air conditioning:

1. Thermal management of motor and electronic control systems: The motor and electronic control systems of electric vehicles generate heat during operation and need to be cooled by a heat dissipation system to ensure the normal operation of the motor and electronic control system.

2. Battery system thermal management: The battery system of electric vehicles also needs thermal management to control the operating temperature of the battery and improve the battery life and performance. Liquid cooling or air cooling systems are often used for thermal management of battery systems.

3. Passenger compartment air conditioning thermal management: In order to provide a comfortable riding environment, electric vehicles also need to consider the passenger compartment air conditioning thermal management, including cooling and heating functions.

The components of the automotive thermal management system may include sensors, control units, cooling systems (such as radiators, fans, water pumps), air conditioning systems (such as compressors, condensers, evaporators), heat exchangers, coolants, heat transfer pipes, etc. Through real-time monitoring and control of temperature, the automotive thermal management system can effectively manage the vehicle.

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2. 10 Questions on Thermal Management Basics of New Energy Vehicles

Q1: What is automotive thermal management?

From the perspective of system integration and the entire vehicle, the heat of the entire vehicle and the heat of the environment are coordinated, and comprehensive means are used to control and optimize heat transfer, keep each component working in the optimal temperature range, and improve all aspects of vehicle performance.

Q2: What is the main function of automotive thermal management?

The main function of automotive thermal management is to ensure that different parts can work at appropriate temperatures through means such as heat dissipation, heating, and insulation, so as to ensure the functional safety and service life of the vehicle.

Moreover, a car is a complex industrial product, consisting of numerous parts and assemblies. The operating temperature and material tolerance temperature of each part are different. Only by ensuring that they operate at appropriate temperatures can the safe, efficient and stable operation of the car be guaranteed.

Q3: What is the automotive thermal management industry chain and supplier product layout?

Automotive thermal management is a very complex systems engineering problem, involving a very large industrial chain, from upstream parts suppliers, to mid-level system integrators and service providers, and then to downstream automobile manufacturers.

Product layout and customers of major suppliers of thermal management systems. Currently, the domestic automotive thermal management market is still mainly controlled by old foreign-funded auto parts companies such as Valeo, Hanon, Mahle, Bosch, and Denso. Domestic companies such as Estron, Auteco, Yinlun, Songzhi, and Sanhua are also in a relatively leading position.

Q4: With the trend of electrification, has the vehicle thermal management system undergone significant changes?

The thermal management of new energy vehicles mainly regulates the temperature of batteries, motors, electronic controls and passenger compartments to ensure that they operate at the most suitable temperature. Since there is no engine heat source, new energy vehicles generally require additional heating devices to supplement the system heat. Commonly used heating devices include PTC heaters, diesel heaters and heat pump air conditioners.

Under the trend of electrification, the thermal management system of the whole vehicle has undergone major changes. New energy vehicles without heat engines require additional heat-generating devices to maintain the efficient operation of the entire system. The high temperature sensitivity of batteries has led to increasing requirements for the complexity and sophistication of thermal management of new energy vehicles.

Q5: What are the functions of the thermal management architecture of new energy vehicles?

The thermal management system of new energy vehicles can be divided into battery system thermal management, air-conditioning system thermal management and motor and electronic control system thermal management; the battery system thermal management and air-conditioning system thermal management have two major functions: cooling and heating, while the motor and electronic control system thermal management is mainly cooling.

Q6: What are the cooling methods for thermal management of motor and electronic control systems?

Q6: What are the heating methods for thermal management of motor and electronic control systems?

Q7: Thermal management of electric motor and air conditioning systems in new energy vehicles

The power components of electric vehicles, such as motors and electronic controls, have high heat dissipation requirements when working, and usually require active cooling to ensure that the vehicle is within a safe operating temperature range. The motor and electronic control cooling system is similar to the engine cooling system, and its main components include an electric water pump, radiator, cooling fan, expansion kettle and pipelines.

The cooling stage of new energy vehicles is not much different from that of traditional vehicles. In the heating stage, due to the lack of engine heat source, additional heating mechanisms are often required to generate heat to supplement the system heat. PTC heating elements are often the first choice for heaters due to their significant thermal effects, high pressure resistance, and non-combustion safety characteristics. A few models are equipped with more advanced heat pump technology.

Q8: What is a PTC electric heater?

The PTC heating solution with low cost, simple structure and stable operation has become a heating solution commonly used in the new energy vehicle industry. According to its working mode, PTC heaters can be divided into air heating type and water heating type.

The power of a PTC electric heater is usually 6KW, 6 degrees/h. Take the NIO ES6 with a charge of 70 degrees of electricity as an example: the PTC heater uses about 10% of the battery power for one hour, which is a huge drain on the power battery and seriously affects the driving range of the electric vehicle. This is one of the reasons why many electric vehicle owners dare not turn on the air conditioner in winter.

Q9: Can you tell us about the future development trend of air-conditioning systems?

Heat pump air conditioning with better energy efficiency coefficient is the development trend of future air conditioning systems.

A heat pump air conditioner is an air conditioning system that relies on the reverse circulation of the system to forcibly transfer the heat energy of the outside air to the passenger compartment during heating. The entire heat pump system acts as a "porter" of ambient heat, so the energy efficiency coefficient of a heat pump air conditioner is 2 to 3 times higher than that of a PTC.

Q10: As cars move toward electrification and intelligence, what changes will occur in vehicle energy management?

As cars move toward electrification and intelligence, the energy management content of the whole vehicle increases, and the requirements for automobile energy management are getting higher and higher. The overall energy management of each subsystem from the whole vehicle level will become the future development trend of electric vehicles. The new energy thermal management system is gradually shifting from a decentralized to an integrated thermal management system.

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3. Thermal management and energy storage CCS isolation board for new energy vehicles

There is a certain correlation between the thermal management of new energy vehicles and the energy storage CCS isolation board, especially in the thermal management of the battery system.

1. Thermal management system for new energy vehicles:

It is responsible for managing the heat of electric vehicles, including the thermal management of the battery system. The battery system generates heat during the charging and discharging process. If the heat is not dissipated in a timely and effective manner, it may cause the battery temperature to be too high, affecting the battery performance and life, and even causing safety hazards. Therefore, the thermal management system of new energy vehicles needs to control and adjust the temperature of the battery system through components such as radiators, fans, and coolants.