This course describes the thermal phenomena in Electric Vehicles (EVs), including the primary cooling/heating circuits associated with the power train, cabin, and battery. The major focus is on thermal performance and thermal management of batteries, power electronics and electric motors, and it also includes thermal issues related to cabin electronic systems. Emphasis is on Lithium-ion batteries (LIB), which are expected to continue to be the most widely used battery for EVs in the next decade. This course will cover LIB cells and their fundamentals; principles of operation; electrochemical and heat transfer formulation, modelling and simulation; thermal-related effects on LIB performance and longevity, including aging, degradation, safety, and thermal runaway; thermal modelling of EV system- and component-level, LIB, electric drivetrain, cabin, and fast charger.

Students in this course are expected to have a basic understanding of electrochemistry terminologies and undergraduate-level fundamental knowledge of fluid mechanics, thermodynamics, heat transfer, and numerical methods.