Specific heat capacity

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Heat generation

The heat a cell produces in operation: an irreversible part equal to current times overpotential, and a reversible part from the entropy change, I·T·dE/dT. The Bernardi equation sums them and feeds every thermal model.

Thermal characterisation

Measuring the thermal properties a model needs: specific heat capacity in a calorimeter, thermal conductivity through and along the layers, the entropy coefficient from OCV against temperature, and heat generation under load. Without them a thermal model is a guess.

Thermal diffusivity

How quickly temperature evens out inside a material: thermal conductivity divided by density times specific heat. Heat spreads a distance L in roughly L²/α, so crossing a 10 mm cell at about 0.2 mm²/s through-plane takes several minutes, while aluminium, near 100 mm²/s, equalises almost at once.

Thermal mass

A body’s total heat capacity seen as a buffer against temperature change. A 500 kg pack at about 1 kJ/(kg·K) stores roughly 500 kJ per kelvin, so 10 kW of uncooled heat warms it only about 1.2 K a minute. Together with the thermal resistance to the coolant it sets the pack’s thermal time constant.

Thermal model

A model of cell temperature: at its simplest one thermal mass with heat generation inside and convection outside, at its most detailed a 3D simulation of the pack. Temperature feeds back into every rate, so electrical and thermal models are usually solved together.

References & further reading

Further reading on this topic

These sources provide broader context; they are not presented as citations for every statement in this entry.

1. A General Energy Balance for Battery Systems

   Dawn Bernardi, Ellen Pawlikowski, John Newman · Journal of The Electrochemical Society · 1985

   Topic background · Battery energy balance and irreversible and reversible heat contributions. Reduced thermal models require explicit assumptions and current-sign conventions.

2. University Physics Volume 2, §1.6: Mechanisms of Heat Transfer

   OpenStax, Rice University

   Topic background · Conduction, convection, radiation and thermal resistance.