Steady-state measurement of anisotropic thermal conductivity in prismatic lithium-ion battery

doi:10.3785/j.issn.1008-973X.2026.12.002

Journal of ZheJiang University (Engineering Science)

2026, Vol. 60

Issue (12): 2564-2570 DOI: 10.3785/j.issn.1008-973X.2026.12.002

Steady-state measurement of anisotropic thermal conductivity in prismatic lithium-ion battery

Huaiyu LAN1(

),Lei SHENG1,*(

),Bojun TAO1,Zhendong ZHANG1,Xiaojun ZHANG2,Chunfeng ZHANG2,Qinjian ZHOU1

1. School of Mechanical Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai 200093, China
2. Shanxi Lu’an Taihang Lubricant Limited Company, Changzhi 046000, China

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Abstract

A theoretical method based on the one-dimensional steady-state heat conduction principle was developed to characterize the conductivity along the thickness, width and height directions in order to accurately determine the thermal conductivity of prismatic power lithium-ion batteries. The anisotropic characteristics of the battery’s thermal conductivity and the impact of aging-induced swelling were analyzed. Results showed that the thermal conductivity was the highest along the width direction, followed by the height direction, and the lowest along the thickness direction. The conductivity in both the width and height directions was more than three times that in the thickness direction. The thermal conductivity increased with the battery’s temperature, showing a 6.30% rise from ?20 ℃ to 40 ℃. The through-thickness conductivity decreased by 16.27% after aging with swelling, while the in-plane conductivities (width and height directions) decreased by 7.88% and 8.74%, respectively. The experimental results showed that the proposed method achieved a measurement accuracy of 96.07%.

Key words： lithium-ion battery anisotropic thermal conductivity one-dimensional steady-state heat conduction swelling-induced aging

Received: 11 October 2025 Published: 21 October 2026

CLC:

TP 393

Fund: 国家自然科学青年基金资助项目（52206267）；国家自然科学基金资助项目（52472381）.

Corresponding Authors: Lei SHENG E-mail: 1807569506@qq.com;shenglei369@163.com

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	Huaiyu LAN
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	Zhendong ZHANG
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	Chunfeng ZHANG
	Qinjian ZHOU

Cite this article:

Huaiyu LAN,Lei SHENG,Bojun TAO,Zhendong ZHANG,Xiaojun ZHANG,Chunfeng ZHANG,Qinjian ZHOU. Steady-state measurement of anisotropic thermal conductivity in prismatic lithium-ion battery. Journal of ZheJiang University (Engineering Science), 2026, 60(12): 2564-2570.

URL:

https://www.zjujournals.com/eng/10.3785/j.issn.1008-973X.2026.12.002 OR https://www.zjujournals.com/eng/Y2026/V60/I12/2564

方形锂离子电池各向异性热导率稳态测量

为了精确测定方形动力锂离子电池的热导率，基于一维稳态导热原理提出表征电池厚度、宽度、高度方向热导率的理论方法，研究电池热导率的各向异性特性，以及老化鼓包因素对电池各向异性热导率的影响. 结果表明，电池的宽度方向热导率最大，高度方向热导率次之，厚度方向热导率最小，且宽度、高度方向热导率均超过厚度方向热导率的3倍. 电池热导率随自身温度的升高而增大，从?20 ℃到40 ℃增大6.30%. 电池经鼓包老化后，厚度方向热导率降低了16.27%，宽度、高度方向热导率分别降低了7.88%、8.74%. 试验结果表明，本方法测量精度达到96.07%.

关键词： 锂离子电池, 各向异性热导率, 一维稳态导热, 鼓包老化

Fig.1 Schematic of one-dimensional heat conduction along battery thickness

Fig.2 Temperature variation on cold and hot faces of battery

Tab.1 Specifications of 114 A·h prismatic nickel cobalt manganese lithium-ion cell

Fig.3 Schematic and photograph of experimental apparatus

Fig.4 Schematic diagram of battery thermal conductivity testing system

Fig.5 Thermal field variation of battery upon heating at 0 ℃

Fig.6 Measured result of through-thickness thermal conductivity of battery

Fig.7 Column chart showing variation of through-thickness thermal conductivity with temperature

Fig.8 Comparison of anisotropic thermal conductivity between fresh and aged batteries

Tab.2 Dimensions of swollen aged battery

Fig.9 Layout diagram of aluminum alloy specimen test setup

Tab.3 Specifications of aluminum alloy block

Tab.4 Calibrated anisotropic thermal conductivity of battery


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