LOOPER - LOOP hEat pump ciRcuit

Bernagozzi, Marco and Georgoulas, Anastasios and Miche, Nicolas and Marengo, Marco (2021) LOOPER - LOOP hEat pump ciRcuit. [Data Collection]

Project Description

The project will assess the feasibility of integrating a specific Loop Heat Pipe [LHP] into a heat pump [HP] for a battery electric vehicle [BEV] and determine the potential reductions in energy used to provide cabin heating and cooling. This addresses 'Energy Storage and Energy Management'. The feasibility study will seek to determine if the integration of a 'LOOP hEat pump ciRcuit' [LOOPER] can: a) reduce HP compressor load/demand, thus reduce energy consumption; b) eliminate refrigerant high pressure piping between HP compressor, cabin heating condenser and HP ambient cooling condenser; c) offer novel condenser mounting for cabin; d) offer novel low drag LHP condenser design options for ambient cooling of HP system; e) enable better system packaging via sophisticated integration of parts; f) reduce HP system weight; g) enable novel forced cooling techniques; h) reduce the volume of refrigerant required; i) maintain reasonable costs per unit. The feasibility study will be conducted using a Co-Simulation technique using Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) software. Co-simulation will be conducted using 1D system and 3D CFD vehicle level simulation models. Two 1D system models will be built: a model for the LHP and a model for the HP. Two 3D BEV level CFD models will also be built, those models will enable the simulation of the interaction of LHP ambient condenser for a ram air EV drive cycle, and for a forced air BEV stationary condition. Tata Motors European Technical Centre [TMETC] will lead the feasibility project and will execute 1D HP system modelling and 3D CFD modelling of an electric vehicle, along with providing the vision, system operating data and overall project management. University of Brighton will build up a 1D model of a LHP system, using system data provided by TMETC. This model will be used to understand/determine the feasibility of integrating LHP evaporators with a HP and using LHP condensers to transport heat to the cabin and reject residual HP A/C waste heat to the environment. Moreover, the proposal will analyse the implementation of a low-cost Loop Heat Pipe, since at the moment this technology may have the bottle neck of being quite expensive. There are two possible ways to overcome such an issue: 1) to design a LHP with a two-layer wicking in the evaporator, which may be obtained with a low cost production process or 2) to understand if it is possible to use a new breakthrough technology called Pulsating Loop Heat Pipe, which is based on a simple capillary tube which has the form of a serpentine with multiple evaporator zones. The attention to the implementation of a low-cost passive two-phase thermal system will add another strong business opportunity element to the proposal. The feasibility study will seek to understand the ability of a LHP lifting heat from the hot circuit side of a HP and transporting that to the cabin during heating mode and also transporting waste heat during cabin cooling mode to the BEV exterior environment.