Comparative Research on RC Equivalent Circuit Models for Lithium-Ion Batteries of Electric Vehicles

Equivalent circuit models are a hot research topic in the field of lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles, and scholars have proposed a variety of equivalent circuit models, from simple to complex. On one hand, a simple model cannot simulate the dynamic characteristics of batteries; on the other hand, it is difficult to apply a complex model to a real-time system. At present, there are few systematic comparative studies on equivalent circuit models of lithium-ion batteries. The representative first-order resistor-capacitor (RC) model and second-order RC model commonly used in the literature are studied comparatively in this paper. Firstly, the parameters of the two models are identified experimentally; secondly, the simulation model is built in Matlab/Simulink environment, and finally the output precision of these two models is verified by the actual data. The results show that in the constant current condition, the maximum error of the first-order RC model is 1.65% and the maximum error for the second-order RC model is 1.22%. In urban dynamometer driving schedule (UDDS) condition, the maximum error of the first-order RC model is 1.88%, and for the second-order RC model the maximum error is 1.69%. This is of great instructional significance to the application in practical battery management systems for the equivalent circuit model of lithium-ion batteries of electric vehicles.