Experimental investigation of air-conditioning electrical compressor using binary TiO2–SiO2 polyol-ester nanolubricants

• Main Authors: Mohd Anwar, Zawawi, Wan Hamzah, Wan Azmi, Khamisah, Abdul Hamid, Hendrawati, T. Y., Muhammad Aminullah, Abdul Rahman
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 2024
• Subjects: T Technology (General); TA Engineering (General). Civil engineering (General); TJ Mechanical engineering and machinery; TK Electrical engineering. Electronics Nuclear engineering
• Online Access: http://umpir.ump.edu.my/id/eprint/41327/1/Experimental%20investigation%20of%20air-conditioning%20electrical%20compressor.pdf; http://umpir.ump.edu.my/id/eprint/41327/; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.csite.2024.104045; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.csite.2024.104045

As electric vehicles (EVs) continue to replace conventional gasoline vehicles, maintaining thermal comfort within the car requires additional energy to operate the automotive air-conditioning (AAC) system. This work aims to optimise the electrically driven compressor (EDC) system utilising polyol-ester (POE)-based binary nanolubricants to enhance performance and minimise the size of the EV battery and AAC components. A binary nanolubricant was formulated using a two-step method of formulation. The TiO2–SiO2/POE binary nanolubricant was prepared at different volume concentrations ranging from 0.01 to 0.1 %. The experiment was conducted for the 1200–3840 rpm compressor speed with different initial refrigerant charges between 120 and 160 g. The heat absorption rose by up to 44.2 % while utilising the binary nanolubricant at a volume concentration of 0.03 %. The coefficient of performance (COP) reached its maximum value of 2.43 at a refrigerant charge of 160 g and compressor speed of 1860 rpm. Furthermore, the binary nanolubricant significantly reduced the expansion valve discharge temperature, exhibiting a substantial decrease of up to 51.6 %. The highest COP increment, up to 23.4 %, was achieved at a volume concentration of 0.03 %. Hence, it is recommended to utilise 0.03 % TiO2–SiO2/POE binary nanolubricant to achieve optimal performance in the AAC-EDC system.