Learning Forum

[ARHAM ALI KHAN]

Hello there!

 

I am currently attempting to simulate a Battery Thermal Management setup. However, I encountered an error during meshing that states, "The mesh file exporter could not resolve cyclic dependencies in overlapping contact regions. Please try to Repair Overlapping Contact Regions."

 

The geometry of my setup consists of a U-shaped aluminum channel with a width of 3mm and a wall thickness of 1mm. Inside this channel, there is a passage for the coolant fluid, which is a rectangular passage 1mm wide. On the outer surface of the aluminum channel, there are small contours designed to accommodate cylindrical li-ion cells, thereby increasing the contact area for cooling.

 

I have attempted several solutions to address the issue, but unfortunately, none have yielded the expected temperature contour. Here are the steps I've taken:

1. I tried using the "Watertight" geometry option in Ansys Fluent for meshing.

2. I used the "Share Topology" function in SpaceClaim.

3. I experimented with removing and adding "Contact Regions" in the connections.

4. I repaired the geometry in SpaceClaim, and the fluid volume was extracted using this software as well.

 

Despite these efforts, I have not achieved the desired temperature distribution. I need to apply constant heat generation inputs to all the li-ion batteries (cylinders) and use a convective boundary condition on the outer walls of the cells.

 

If you have any insights or suggestions on how to resolve this issue and obtain the correct temperature contour, I would greatly appreciate your help. Thank you!

image of model:
 

Aluminium channel:

mesh fluid inlet:

mesh error: 

mesh:

[NickFL]

Have you imprinted th surfaces of the cylinders with the Al body? Also this message shows up because of an overlap in the conatacts. Go under Connections in the tree and Right-Click and in the Menu that appears select Check Overlapping Contact Regions. This should point you to the trouble spot.

[ARHAM ALI KHAN]

I have indeed imprinted the surfaces of the cylinders with the Al body in SolidWorks. The geometry was created as an assembly, and I carefully mated each individual cylinder cell to the aluminium (Al) body.

I will need to manually create or modify contacts to resolve any contact issues that may arise.
Thank you for pointing me in the right direction.