Experimental investigation of paraffin wax with graphene enhancement as thermal management materials for batteries

Battery packs have been widely used as the power source in many fields, such as pure or hybrid electric vehicles, because of the advantages of high energy density, long cycle life, low self-discharge rate, no memory effect and so on. The heat dissipation is a key issue in the reliability of the batteries, especially for high power applications. Paraffin waxes are commonly used phase change materials in the thermal management of Li-ion battery packs. In order to improve the thermal performance, graphene powders are utilized as additives to increase the thermal conductivity of paraffin waxes. A series of graphene-enhanced paraffin wax samples are prepared, and then the prepared samples are applied to power sources for experimental evaluation. The results show an improved heat dissipation of paraffin waxes with graphene enhancement. Temperature rise in the heat source can be decreased, and the effect is more obvious for higher power case.