Controlling Parked Vehicle Interior Temperature Using Renewable Energy

Abstract

A parked vehicle cabin can be treated as a nearly closed volume. So, when an automobile is parked under sunlight the solar radiation heats the interior to extensive temperatures of above 60°C. These extreme temperatures reduce the cabin thermal comfort of the occupants, especially until the automobile’s in-built cooling system brings the temperature to a comfortable level. The extreme temperatures in the cabin have also led to several heatstroke victims and even deaths of occupants in parked automobiles. These extreme conditions also degrade cabin materials. This research focuses on developing partly portable cooling equipment based on the vapor compression refrigerant cycle that is powered by solar energy for a car cabin. The equipment was sized for a Suzuki Wagon R – 2015 automobile, based on the local heat loads that were gained in this research. Also, two Computer simulations were done to determine the cabin conditions with and without the designed equipment. Further verifications of these results were done by testing a prototype of the design. The results from computer simulations and test results both confirm the reduction in cabin temperature to below 44°C. Further developments are necessary for this model to make the parked car cabin completely safe for occupants. With the current results gained using the prototype developed, the car cabin thermal comfort has increased by a huge margin, where the temperature has reduced from above 60°C to below 44°C. This paper focuses on the simulation segment of the research conducted.