Traction Battery Cooling

[SolarSteve]

Does anyone know how the Li Ion battery is temperature controlled if the car is sitting in a parking lot on a hot sunny day, windows closed and not plugged in? I am concerned as one of the traction batteries is inside the car. I have read that battery degradation occurs above 86 degrees. Does the Focus EV have a chiller that uses energy when parked in the sun? Does it use a resistive element to heat the fluid in the winter to keep the batteries warm? Or is Ford using a Visteon heat pump?

 

[danholl]

Does anyone know how the Li Ion battery is temperature controlled if the car is sitting in a parking lot on a hot sunny day, windows closed and not plugged in? I am concerned as one of the traction batteries is inside the car. I have read that battery degradation occurs above 86 degrees. Does the Focus EV have a chiller that uses energy when parked in the sun? Does it use a resistive element to heat the fluid in the winter to keep the batteries warm? Or is Ford using a Visteon heat pump?

The battery is temperature controlled and uses power from the battery to keep itself within acceptable temperature range.

 

[Fluke]

Does anyone know how the Li Ion battery is temperature controlled if the car is sitting in a parking lot on a hot sunny day, windows closed and not plugged in? I am concerned as one of the traction batteries is inside the car. I have read that battery degradation occurs above 86 degrees. Does the Focus EV have a chiller that uses energy when parked in the sun? Does it use a resistive element to heat the fluid in the winter to keep the batteries warm? Or is Ford using a Visteon heat pump?

The battery is temperature controlled and uses power from the battery to keep itself within acceptable temperature range.

Do you have a source for this? I'd like to believe this is the case from a battery longevity standpoint, but I can't say that I have seen anything in my first year of ownership that would lead me to believe that battery power is being used to either heat or cool the battery when the car is sitting in a parking lot.

 

[jmueller065]

I don't think the heating/cooling system runs while the car is parked (unless it is plugged in--hence the "too hot plug in now" messages).

This press release from Ford implies that it only runs when the vehicle is "on" and/or charging:
http://corporate.ford.com/news-center/press-releases-detail/pr-new-ford-focus-electric-keeps-its-34774

When charging or being used, the battery is cooled by an integrated cooling system using a “chiller” to lower the temperature of the coolant going through the battery when needed

There is more info in this link, but I think its just a rehash of the press release above:
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2011/01/focus-20110107.html

 

[SolarSteve]

Thanks for all the followup. If one has no access to a 110 or 240 volt outlet while parked in a parking lot at work the battery could suffer degradation in the same manner as the Leaf. Now I see why Nissan doesn't bother with temperature control. It is added expense and only useful if you have access to a plug and who has that privilege at work.
Looks like Phinergy's metal air battery is the way to go. Put 3 of these in a vehicle - total weight 150 pounds and drive for 3,000 miles and have the aluminum plates changed in 3,000 miles like an oil change. Sounds like Li Ion batteries have a long way to go or be replaced with something more viable as metal - air - water. I think I will wait to purchase an electric car. Who wants to loose range due to heat degradation on an already limited range vehicle. The design is all flawed.

 

[vetboy45]

Is a design flawed just because it uses tech that's actually available at this point rather than something that may or may not become commercially viable? Li ion batteries are much more robust than some have lead us to believe. I also seem to remember that the temperature of the battery is much more important when charging or discharging than just sitting. My Tesla actively heats and cools when not plugged in but it also has a vampire drain of about 6 miles (at 320 watts/mile) per day. That probably wouldn't sit too well with some people given the 76 mile range of the FFE although I'd be fine with it. With that opinion, you should definitely wait because this is the territory of early adopters right now. We're willing to put up with some issues so that the technology has a chance to get to the point that the general population would buy it. You are apparently not. There is nothing wrong with that other than it slows down the adoption of green tech when those of us who care about the environment wish it would speed up.

Why are you interested in electric cars anyway?