GRAPHITIC FILM-ENABLED BATTERY COOLING SYSTEM AND METHOD OF OPERATING SAME

1 . A cooling system for a battery module or pack comprising one or a plurality of battery cells, the system comprising a graphitic heat spreader element configured to be in thermal communication with the battery cells; and a cooling device in thermal communication with the graphitic heat spreader element and configured to transport heat generated from the battery cells through the graphitic heat spreader element to the cooling device when the battery cell is discharged, wherein the cooling device includes both a thermal interface portion and a cooling portion.

2 . The cooling system of claim 1 , further comprising a thermal interface material (TIM) coupled to at least one of the battery cells and the heat spreader element.

3 . The cooling system of claim 1 , wherein said graphitic heat spreader element is in a form of a film, sheet, layer, belt, or band having a thickness from about 100 nm to 10 mm.

4 . The cooling system of claim 1 , wherein said graphitic heat spreader element has a thermal conductivity no less than 200 W/mK.

5 . The cooling system of claim 1 , wherein said graphitic heat spreader element has a thermal conductivity no less than 1,000 W/mK.

6 . The cooling system of claim 1 , wherein said graphitic heat spreader element comprises a graphitic film selected from a flexible graphite sheet, an artificial graphite film, or a combination thereof.

7 . The cooling system of claim 2 , wherein said thermal interface material comprises a material selected from graphene sheets, graphene foam, graphene-containing paste, graphite flake-containing paste, graphene-containing polymer composite, flexible graphite sheet, artificial graphite film, particles of graphite, Ag, Ag, Cu, Al, brass, steel, Ti, Ni, Mg alloy, silicon nitride, boron nitride, aluminum nitride, boron arsenide, a composite thereof, or a combination thereof.

8 . The cooling system of claim 2 , wherein said thermal interface material is electrically insulating and thermally conducting, having a thermal conductivity no less than 1 W/mK.

9 . The cooling system of claim 2 , wherein said thermal interface material comprises a plastic or rubbery matrix composite containing graphene sheets, expanded graphite flakes, or a combination thereof.

10 . The cooling system of claim 2 , wherein said thermal interface material comprises a graphene foam having a thermal conductivity from 0.1 W/mK to 100 W/mK and said graphitic heat spreader element comprises an artificial graphite film having a thermal conductivity from 600 W/mK to 1,750 W/mK.

11 . The cooling system of claim 1 , wherein the cooling device is selected from a heat sink, a heat pipe, a vapor chamber, a stream of flowing fluid, a bath of a coolant fluid, a thermoelectric device, a heat exchanger, a cooled plate, a radiator, or a combination thereof.

12 . The cooling system of claim 1 , wherein the heat spreader element is in a heat-spreading relation to a surface of the battery cell and receives heat therefrom when the battery cell is discharged to power an external device.

13 . The cooling system of claim 1 , wherein the heat spreader element is configured to form multiple loading sites for accommodating individual battery cells.

14 . The cooling system of claim 13 , wherein said lodging sites comprise cylindrical pores to accommodate cylindrical-shape battery cells or rectangular pores to accommodate rectangular-shape battery cells.

15 . The cooling system of claim 1 , wherein the battery module comprises a lithium-ion battery, lithium metal secondary battery, lithium-sulfur battery, lithium-air battery, lithium-selenium battery, sodium-ion battery, sodium metal secondary battery, sodium-sulfur battery, sodium-air battery, magnesium-ion battery, magnesium metal battery, aluminum-ion battery, aluminum metal secondary battery, zinc-ion battery, zinc metal battery, zinc-air battery, nickel metal hydride battery, lead acid battery, lead acid-carbon battery, lead acid-based ultra-battery, lithium-ion capacitor, or supercapacitor.

16 . A method of operating a battery cooling system, said method comprising: (a) bringing a graphitic heat spreader element in thermal contact with one or a plurality of battery cells in a module or pack to receive heat generated from the battery cells; and (b) directing the heat to transport through the graphitic heat spreader element to a cooling device which acts to remove the heat and keeps a battery temperature at or below a desired temperature.

17 . The method of claim 16 , wherein a thermal interface material is disposed between a surface of a battery cell and the graphitic heat spreader element.

18 . The method of claim 16 , wherein said graphitic heat spreader element has a thermal conductivity from 10 W/mK to 1,750 W/mK.

19 . The method of claim 16 , wherein said graphitic heat spreader element comprises a graphitic film selected from a flexible graphite sheet or an artificial graphite film obtained from carbonization and graphitization of a carbon precursor film.

20 . The method of claim 17 , wherein said thermal interface material comprises a material selected from graphene sheets, graphene foam, graphene-containing paste, graphite particle-containing paste, graphene-containing polymer composite, flexible graphite sheet, artificial graphite film, particles of Ag, Ag, Cu, Al, brass, steel, Ti, Ni, Mg alloy, silicon nitride, boron nitride, aluminum nitride, boron arsenide, a composite thereof, or a combination thereof.

21 . The method of claim 16 , wherein the cooling device is selected from a heat sink, a heat pipe, a vapor chamber, a stream of flowing fluid, a bath of a coolant fluid, a thermoelectric device, a cooled plate, a heat exchanger, a radiator, or a combination thereof.