Faulty cell prediction accuracy comparison of machine learning algorithms using temperature sensor placement optimization approach in immersion cooled Li-ion battery modules

Immersion cooling is a promising thermal management system for LiBs where the cells are submerged in a thermally conductive coolant, thus improving heat dissipation and prolonging battery life. The present study investigates an aligned arranged 4S4P immersion-cooled LiB module to develop a best-fit machine learning (ML) model that could predict the fault position in the module depending on the inputs from the temperature sensors that are optimized under different operating and fault conditions. The Pearson Correlation Coefficient (PCC) feature selection approach is used to optimize the sensors, while the data is generated from numerical simulations on a 4S4P immersion-cooled LiB module. The model validation through internal experimental trials is performed on a 2S2P battery module. The four ML classification algorithms, which include the K Nearest Neighbors, Random Forest (RF), Extreme Gradient, and Long Short Term Memory (LSTM), are trained on the optimized sensors data and are further tested internally and externally to assess their performance on unseen data within and outside the training range. A 5-fold cross-validation process is also implemented, and following a comprehensive comparison of the predictions based on the accuracies and model elapsed time, the best-fit model is identified. The results conclude that while the LSTM model slightly outweighs the other models with an accuracy of 98.18% for the specific external test cases, the RF model is chosen as the best-fit model with a prediction accuracy of 99.7% based on the error metrics and low training time for the internal testing. The outcomes of this present work contribute to the early identification of battery module failures, enhancing safety and reducing costs. •Faulty cell prediction in 16-cell immersion cooled LiB modules using ML models.•Fluid temperature sensors placement optimization using heat map approach.•TR cell prediction accuracy comparison using different machine learning models.•Model cross-validation, external testing and error evaluation for prediction results.