battery heat exchanger

[doug]

Here's a press release from a company that apparently makes a heat exchanger for the battery in the Roadster 2.

Dana Develops Industry-First Battery Cooling Technology for Electric Vehicles

MAUMEE, Ohio, Nov. 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Dana Holding Corporation (NYSE: DAN) has developed a Long® heat exchanger designed to extend battery life in hybrid and electric vehicles. The technology, the first of its kind, recently debuted on Tesla Motors’ 2010 all-electric Roadster Sport.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/19990903/DANA)

Lithium-ion battery life is dependent on maintaining optimum operating temperature. Dana’s unique heat-exchange technology cools the Roadster’s battery by transferring heat generated within the battery to the vehicle’s climate-control system. In addition, a temperature sensor mount provides continuous feedback to the climate-control system. This interface helps to maintain the battery’s ideal temperature during operation, thus helping to extend battery life.

"Dana is committed to providing our best-in-class engineering and manufacturing expertise to electric-vehicle manufacturers such as Tesla Motors," Dana President and CEO Jim Sweetnam said. "Our advanced battery technology solutions will help drive our growth in this exciting market segment."

Dana engineers constructed the heat exchanger using a patented aluminum brazing process, ensuring cleanliness of both the climate control and battery coolant fluids. The use of high-strength aluminum alloys provides greater material strength and contributes to weight savings. Additionally, the chiller’s compact design also provides significant space savings - critical for helping engineers accommodate the Roadster’s 6,800-cell battery pack.

"Advanced manufacturing capabilities such as our unique brazing process, combined with our research commitment to the hybrid and electric segment, position Dana as a valued contributor to hybrid-vehicle battery technology," said Ted Zielinski, director of engineering, Dana Thermal Products Group.

Dana developed and is manufacturing the heat exchanger at its advanced engineering center in Oakville, Ontario, Canada.

About Dana Holding Corporation

Dana is a world leader in the supply of axles; driveshafts; and structural, sealing, and thermal-management products; as well as genuine service parts. The company’s customer base includes virtually every major vehicle manufacturer in the global automotive, commercial vehicle, and off-highway markets. Based in Maumee, Ohio, the company employs approximately 22,500 people in 26 countries and reported 2008 sales of $8.1 billion. For more information, please visit www.dana.com.

SOURCE Dana Holding Corporation

 

[mpt]

It's a bit noisy, that's all I can say... if it's what I think it is anyway.

When the battery gets warm there's a motor sound from the bulkhead in front of the passenger. It runs at variable speeds, in steps for a minute or so until the battery temperature is under control. At the same time, the cabin warms up!

 

[DrComputer]

That noise is from the A/C compressor. I doubt Dana had anything to do with that horrible selection since they just designed the battery heat exchanger. I agree, not only is the compressor noisy, it also vibrates horribly once it starts using 8+ amps. I've complained to Bob in the LA store about it but I just get the "that's the way it works" answer. Now that it's a bit colder here in LA, it doesn't come on as ofter so it's a bit more tolerable. In the summer it drove me crazy every time it would try to cool the battery pack and the cabin at the same time.

 

[chronopublish]

DrComputer--

It's funny you mention that - I recently took delivery of my 2008 Roadster (formerly VP27) and the compressor noise bothered me so much that I was convinced something was wrong with the car, so I took the car to the LA store and Bob assured me that it was normal.

He also mentioned that it only happens in 2008 cars, not in 2010s - I take from your post that is not actually the case.

That noise is loud enough that I am surprised that I've never seen it mentioned in any review or any post in these forums until today!

I have noticed that putting the car into Range mode reduces the likelihood of the compressor coming on, though it still will if it's hot enough. I've also observed that if the compressor is on and I switch into Range and then immediately back to Standard, it shuts off and usually stays off.

I wish there were some way to override the compressor completely and just tell the car "never turn this on unless I'm traveling at freeway speeds". I would sacrifice any amount of battery life not to have to deal with that noise.

 

[DrComputer]

The compressor on the 2010 is actually louder than the 08 when it hits full speed. This was confirmed by Bob. So far they have no fix, nor do I think they ever will. Maybe in Roadster 3.0 they will get a manufacturer to make a quiet electric compressor. I know they exist as my Lexus LS600hL has an electric compressor that is very quiet (and actually produces very cold air--what a concept).

 

[TEG]

Electric A/C compressor:

 

[moe1343]

Battery peak tempreture

Does anyone know how hot the battery gets without cooling?
Thank you
Moe

 

[DaveD]

Does anyone know how hot the battery gets without cooling?

This implies a cooling system failure (or battery depletion) which is not normal, and definitely Not Good.

 

[moe1343]

Sorry . My fault as I was not clear on my question. I didn't mean cooling failure circumstances . I meant if we want to use the battery heat to heat up the cabin in cold conditions what kind of temperature are we looking at? Say the battery tempreture rises to 90C and ambient temp is only 2C . We can use the temp difference to heat the cabin simultaneous with cooling the battery by air or coolant . Is the 90C with no cooling after steady state opertion is reached a right figure or is it too high?