A Method to Enhance Cabin Air Quality with Energy Efficiency in parallel for AC System in Electric Vehicle

During air conditioning operation in automobiles (ICE and EVs), cabin air is predominantly recirculated to reduce heating and cooling loads of occupant space. However, prolonged recirculation of air leads to deteriorated cabin air quality. Simply introducing fresh air to improve air quality is inefficient, as external air conditions are unpredictable and may negatively affect energy consumption as well as cabin interior air quality. Moreover, even in recirculation mode under low ambient conditions where de-humidified air is available outside, energy usage increases due to the dual operation of the electric compressor (e-Compressor) and the Positive Temperature Coefficient (PTC) heater especially in case of Electric Vehicle. In this dual-mode scenario, the e-Compressor maintains a low evaporator temperature for effective air dehumidification, while the PTC heater supplies sensible heating to achieve the desired cabin comfort. In case of ICE vehicle the heater is coolant based and free heat is available whereas in case of EVs it’s a parasitic load on battery. This combination results in higher energy consumption, presenting challenges in optimizing both air quality and energy efficiency in EV climate control systems. This work tries to understand and control overall cabin air quality using plurality of sensors (ambient, humidity, air quality) inside and outside the car and uses, a control mechanism to predict and control air inlet operations to achieve always better cabin air quality with reduced power consumption.