Modeling and simulation of thermal runaway phenomenons in commercial Li-ion battery cells

Abstract

Li-ion batteries, while widely adopted, exhibit complex behaviours under extreme conditions that can lead to thermal runaway, a hazardous phenomenon responsible for battery failure and significant safety concerns. The research is motivated by the critical knowledge gaps in the understanding of battery thermal runaway. The limited exploration of the rapid reactions occurring during battery failure, the absence of a specified triggering temperature, and the insufficient understanding of the role of gas formation and gas venting, collectively prompted a deeper investigation. This thesis is focused on gaining a deeper understanding of battery thermal runaway at the cell level. To achieve this, GT-SUITE is utilized to create two models that replicate Accelerating Rate Calorimeter (ARC) battery testing and investigate heat generation and gas venting. The first model combines electrochemical and thermal aspects and analyzes stages of thermal runaway by discretizing them on a cell temperature scale. Such a model not only defines the sequence of events but also calculates the total heat generation for each stage, focusing on the analysis of anode and cathode rapid reactions and their influence on the thermal runaway. The results are validated with experimental results and found to exhibit good accuracy. The second model specifically focuses on gas venting, capturing released gases and analyzing mass loss in the battery cell. Overall, the research presents a detailed analysis of Li-ion battery thermal runaway phenomena while providing temperature and reaction rates boundary conditions for pack-level analysis.