Hydrogen gas diffusion behavior and detector installation optimization of lithium ion battery energy-storage cabin

H2 and CO are regarded as effective early safety-warning gases for preventing battery thermal runaway accidents. However, heat dissipation systems and dense accumulation of batteries in energy-storage systems lead to complex diffusion behaviors of characteristic gases. The detector installation position significantly affects the gas detection time. We conducted a gas diffusion behavior study and proposed a detection position optimization method through experiments and simulations. The gas warning effectiveness and accuracy of the simulations were experimentally verified. The results showed that an H2 detector at the top of the cabin could warn 145 s before thermal runaway. To shorten the detection time, nearly one hundred gas diffusion simulations were performed. The detector installation strategy was explored using integer programming; the results showed that installing 3–5 detectors in the cabin was optimal. The detection time with three detectors was 116.43 s shorter than with one detector. The experimental and simulation results indicate an effective gas detector installation method for early safety warnings in energy-storage cabins.