Multi-objective optimisation and cyclic performance evaluation of a metal foam-enhanced hybrid battery thermal management system

High-rate cyclic operation of lithium-ion batteries places strict requirements on thermal management to maintain safety and temperature uniformity. In response, this study presents the design, optimisation, and cyclic performance evaluation of a novel hybrid battery thermal management system (HBTMS) integrating phase change material (PCM), liquid cooling, and copper metal foam as porous fins and layered inserts. A unified architecture is proposed in which copper foam is utilised in two distinct regions, being embedded within the PCM to enhance conduction and integrated within the liquid-cooling channels to intensify forced convection, thereby strengthening the both passive–active heat dissipation mechanisms rather than being confined to a single cooling method. The Taguchi design of experiments (DOE) method was employed to simultaneously optimise the HBTMS with respect to key performance metrics, including the maximum battery surface temperature (TMax, Sur), maximum temperature difference within the battery module (ΔTMax), performance evaluation criterion (PEC), and energy density (Ed). Numerical simulations employed the enthalpy–porosity method for PCM modelling and the Darcy–Brinkman–Forchheimer (DBF), local thermal equilibrium (LTE), and local thermal non-equilibrium (LTNE) models for porous media. The proposed HBTMS delivered markedly improved thermal performance, maintaining TMax, Sur at least 10 K below the safety limit of 323.15 K and limiting ΔTMax under 5 K. A further novelty lies in the comprehensive cyclic evaluation, which explicitly accounts for both discharge and charge phases, demonstrating complete PCM re-solidification and preventing cumulative heat build-up over cycles. Ambient temperature, coolant temperature, and mass flow rate were identified as dominant factors.