Setting Up Tab Connections

Set up tab connectors to define the connection between the positive and negative tabs of the battery cells.

A physical connection between the positive and negative tabs of the battery cells can be modeled using tab connectors. For a regular formation of cells, a single tab connector can be used, and Simcenter STAR-CCM+ uses copies of the connector to join all the tabs in the battery module. A simple tab connector has been prepared for this tutorial.

To set up tab connectors:

  1. Select File > Import > Import Surface Mesh from the menu bar.
  2. In the Open dialog, select the tabConnector.x_b file.
  3. Click Open.
  4. In the Import Surface Options dialog, Click OK.
    The default import surface options are appropriate for this tutorial.

The imported geometry consists of 3 parts: a positive post, a negative post, and a strap. These parts are added to the Geometry > Parts node in the Simcenter STAR-CCM+ tree.

Use the imported tab connector parts in the battery module definition.

  1. Right-click the Batteries > Battery Modules > Battery Module > Tab Connections node and select Setup Tab Connections.


    The Setup Tabs Connections in-place dialog appears.
  2. Set Connections Setup Method to Copy Single Tab Connector.

The positive tab of the first cell in a string of cells that are connected in series generally becomes the positive terminal for the battery. Similarly, the negative tab on the last cell in a string of cells that are connected in series becomes the negative terminal for the battery. This means that the positive tab on the first cell and the negative tab on the last cell in the series remain open when the tab connectors are added.

The tab connector parts are assigned using the First Post Parts, Strap Parts, and Second Post Parts options.

  1. In the First Post Parts property, click (Custom Editor).
  2. In the Set Connection Geometry Parts dialog, select Tab Connector: -ve.
  3. Click OK.
  4. Set the Strap Parts to Tab Connector: Strap.
  5. Set the Second Post Parts to Tab Connector: +ve.

    The completed dialog is shown below:



  6. Click Apply, then click Close.