Thermal Management of a Hybrid Electric Vehicle in Cold Weather

Cold weather is an important matter for electric and hybrid-electric vehicles (EV/HEVs), because the electro-chemical process is slowed at low temperatures, hence inducing a loss of power and energy. To prevent it from happening, battery packs are heated via a battery thermal management system (BTMS). However, in some cases, HEVs/EVs are not connected to the grid, so the BTMS uses energy from the battery pack, thus impacting total autonomy. Strategies exist, but must be optimized. Therefore, this paper proposes the design of a HEV strategy that is parked outside and unplugged from the electrical grid. Its objective is to find a compromise between the cost in energy contained in the battery and the aging of the cells. The optimization is based on dynamic programming and utilizes an electro-thermal battery model including aging. Simulation results are then compared with other strategies, underlining that parking outside at work or overnight without plugging in are issues with the actual strategies of common EVs/HEVs, mainly because aging as a result of cold temperatures is not considered.