Thermal Management of Vehicle Cabins, External Surfaces, and Onboard Electronics: An Overview

Abstract

Reducing heat accumulation within vehicles and ensuring appropriate vehicular temperature levels can lead to enhanced vehicle fuel economy, range, reliability, longevity, passenger comfort, and safety. Advancements in vehicle thermal management remain key as new technologies, consumer demand, societal concerns, and government regulations emerge and evolve. This study summarizes several recent advances in vehicle thermal management technology and modeling, with a focus on three key areas: the cabin, electronics, and exterior components of vehicles. Cabin-related topics covered include methods for reducing thermal loads and improving heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems; and advancements in window glazing/tinting and vehicle surface treatments. For the thermal management of electronics, including batteries and insulated-gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs), active and passive cooling methods that employ heat pipes, heat sinks, jet impingement, forced convection, and phase-change materials are discussed. Finally, efforts to model and enhance the heat transfer of exterior vehicular components are reviewed while considering drag/friction forces and environmental effects. Despite advances in the field of vehicle thermal management, challenges still exist; this article provides a broad summary of the major issues, with recommendations for further study. Keywords: Vehicle design, Automotive engineering, Electronics packaging, Heat pipes, Climate control, Heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning, Battery cooling, Thermal soak