Vehicle Thermal Management Using Heat Pipes

Electric vehicle components, based on their function, can be classified into three categories i.e. lighting function (e.g. headlamp, display, sound system, camera), processing functions (infotainment, autonomous unit) and power (e.g. inverter, converter, batteries) functions. The present paper presents different cooling approaches for vehicle electronics/electrical systems, identify domain for two phase technologies and provide examples for heat pipe modules for cooling these functionalities. Roadmap for vehicle electronics/electrical system with target cooling technologies for each segment is elaborated. Heat pipe system based on natural or forced convection (by air or liquid) are presented, w.r.t structural design and thermal performance. These design proposals can include different design architectures (capillary heat pipes, loop heat pipe, pulsating heat pipes), integration methods (solder, epoxy, mechanical fixing) and interfacing options (electrical isolation, thermal interface). Cooling solutions, outlined in this presentation, will provide merits in term of lightweight, high thermal performance (including heat capacity & thermal uniformity), lifetime reliable, structurally robustness and safer against high voltage issues, which are critical for automotive industry, particularly for upcoming vehicular technologies (electro-mobility, autonomous driving, high performance computing, fast charging).