Design and Research on the Thermal Management Integrated Control System of BEV Based on Heat Pump Air Conditioner

• Published in: SAE international journal of passenger vehicle systems 2022-04, Vol.15 (2), p.91-104, Article 15-15-02-0007
• Main Authors: Zeng, Xiaohua, Huang, Yufeng, Song, Dafeng, Gao, Fuwang
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Air conditioner; Electric vehicle; Heat pump; Hybrid heating; Integration; Thermal management system; Waste heat recovery
• ISSN: 2770-3460; 2770-3479; 2770-3479
• DOI: 10.4271/15-15-02-0007

Aiming at solving the battery electric vehicle (BEV) problems of high energy consumption and low efficiency in heating at low temperature, this study takes the thermal management system of BEV as the research object and develops an integrated thermal management control system based on heat pump air-conditioning for BEV. First, the functional requirements and optimal operating temperature range of each BEV subsystem are defined. Second, on the basis of the thermodynamic cycle principle of the air-conditioning system and compared with the traditional positive temperature coefficient thermistor (PTC) heating mode, the high heating efficiency and low energy consumption advantages of the heat pump system in winter are highlighted. Third, combined with the special structural characteristics of BEV, a hybrid heating scheme (i.e., heat pump system + PTC) is proposed, and a “motor/electronic control system waste heat recovery” scheme is formulated to realize the secondary recovery of energy. Fourth, the functional mode of the integrated vehicle thermal management scheme is divided, its working circuit is determined, and then its work priority rules are established. Finally, the control strategy models of the key components of the system are established using MATLAB/Simulink, while the thermal management system model is built using AMESim. The application environment scenarios are set, and the efficiency of the system under different temperatures is simulated and analyzed to verify the effectiveness of the developed system. Results show that the developed system has a significant effect, effectively reducing the energy consumption when the vehicle starts the thermal management system at low temperature while improving the vehicle efficiency. Thus, this research contributes to the improvement and application of the heating system of BEVs at low temperature.