The Investigation on the Heating Performance of the Heat Pump System with Waste Heat Recovery for the Electric Vehicle

In this study, an innovative heat pump system was designed and prototyped to heat the vehicle cabin interior by utilizing the waste heat of electric vehicles (EVs). The experimental investigation of this heat pump system was performed with three different working conditions that included only a HP system or a PTC heater and the HP system utilizing waste heat. For the theoretical calculations of waste heat recovery of EV, an in-city route was selected considering the Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicles Test Cycle (WLTC) driving cycle by taking into account the selected vehicle characteristics. The experiments were performed under different ambient conditions. As a result of this study, it was shown that the energy efficiency of EV for the heating process can be increased by using the waste heat of EV components including an electric motor, battery package, and other elements. Another important result is that the heat pump system using waste heat recovery represents a promising solution for the new generation electric vehicles that the target temperature (26°C) was obtained in a very short time.