Rapid degassing from Donaldson’s Dual-Stage Jet vent

Donaldson’s new Dual-Stage Jet battery vent allows safe and rapid degassing (Photo: Donaldson)

Filtration specialist Donaldson, a US company (Minneapolis, MI) which has its European headquarters in Leuven, Belgium, has introduced its new Dual-Stage Jet battery vent for electric vehicle and machine battery packs.

The new vent is said to take ‘degassing rates to unmatched levels’. To do this, the vent uses a ‘unique’ medium-pressure design to eject the poppet and cap. This provides a larger opening for gas to escape.

Fitted to a battery pack, the vent can reduce damage to the pack in the case of a problem, while also helping to prevent a related fire from starting.

Details released by Donaldson say that the new design can reduce the number of vents required on a given battery pack by up to 90%.

The new Dual-Stage Jet vent also plays a key role in pressure equalisation and gas ingress processes during normal operation.

“Customers were telling us that they needed even higher degassing rates than what was available on the market, so the Donaldson Vehicle Electrification Development engineering team came up with a unique, creative design where the poppet and cap can be jettisoned to instantly produce a much larger opening for gas to escape and help mitigate thermal runaway,” explained Shane Campbell, product manager for Vehicle Electrification at Donaldson.

Exploded view of the Dual-Stage Jet battery vent (Photo: Donaldson)

He continued: “The pressure then rapidly decreases inside the pack, greatly reducing the risk of damage to additional cells and giving occupants extra time to escape from the vehicle.”

Donaldson’s Dual-Stage Jet is available in two configurations; screw-in/bolt-on or quarter-turn bayonet fittings. Agricultural and other heavy-duty vehicle manufacturers are likely to favour the former, which can offer more flexibility for use with bulkier battery packs. The lighter bayonet fittings will be used in the automotive sector, which provide a haptic feedback signal to verify proper installation.

The new vent is now available off-the-shelf for vehicle and machine manufacturers. Donaldson further offers the opportunity to customise the design to suit individual applications.

“Our customers often have different thicknesses of aluminium for their battery pack housing, but it’s easy for us to make an almost identical part that has a small change in the leg length when required,” said Matt Goode, engineering manager, Vehicle Electrification Development at Donaldson.