Search Results

When operated, the cabin climate control system is the largest auxiliary load on a vehicle. This load has significant impact on fuel economy for conventional and hybrid vehicles, and it drastically reduces the driving range of all-electric vehicles (EVs). Heating is even more detrimental to EV range than cooling because no engine waste heat is available. Reducing the thermal loads on the vehicle climate control system will extend driving range and increase the market penetration of EVs. Researchers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory have evaluated strategies for vehicle climate control load reduction with special attention toward grid-connected electric vehicles. Outdoor vehicle thermal testing and computational modeling were used to assess potential strategies for improved thermal management and to evaluate the effectiveness of thermal load reduction technologies. A human physiology model was also used to evaluate the impact on occupant thermal comfort.

At the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), one of the goals of the Center for Transportation Technologies and Systems is to develop innovative techniques for reducing automobile fuel usage and tailpipe emissions by decreasing the auxiliary loads on the propulsion system of advanced vehicles. The power required to cool the passenger compartment can significantly reduce the range of an electric vehicle (EV) and the fuel economy of a hybrid electric vehicle (HEV). We are investigating several ways to decrease auxiliary loads.