Vehicle Dehumidifier Regeneration Air Reuse for Cabin Heating
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional vehicle air conditioning systems waste heat energy by releasing moisture into the air during the regeneration process of dehumidifying materials, which can be utilized for space heating, leading to inefficiency, especially in winter.
Innovation Solution
A vehicle air conditioning system that incorporates a steam trap in a pipe to circulate air containing moisture released during regeneration, allowing it to merge with the air returning to the vehicle interior, thereby utilizing the heated air for space heating and improving energy efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the functional material is heated to regenerate trapped components, then the functional material can be regenerated and continue trapping components, but the heated air containing moisture is released to the exterior causing energy waste
Solution Approach 1:
The patent converts the harmful waste heat (heated air released to exterior) into a beneficial resource by redirecting it through the heat exchanger to preheat incoming fresh air. The moisture-containing heated air that would otherwise be wasted is now used to reduce the heating load on the heater, thereby converting energy loss into energy recovery and improving overall system efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent recovers the thermal energy from the moisture-containing air that is discharged during the regeneration process. Instead of discarding this heated air to the exterior, it is routed through the heat exchanger where its thermal energy is recovered to preheat the fresh air entering the system, thereby reducing the energy consumption of the heater.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If ventilation is increased to remove CO2 and harmful components, then the vehicle interior environment is improved, but heater energy loss increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent recovers thermal energy from the air stream that would otherwise be wasted during ventilation and regeneration operations. By routing this air through the heat exchanger, the system preheats incoming fresh air, thereby reducing the energy required by the heater to maintain the vehicle interior temperature during high-ventilation periods.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transforms the potentially harmful cold draft from increased ventilation into a beneficial preheating opportunity. The heat exchanger captures waste heat from the system's air streams and uses it to warm the incoming fresh air, converting what would be a harmful cold influx into a controlled, preheated air supply that maintains comfort while enabling effective ventilation.
3Productivity
If the functional material contact area is increased to improve trapping performance, then the trapping efficiency increases, but the heating time and energy requirement for regeneration increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent recovers waste thermal energy from the regeneration air stream and uses it to preheat the fresh air entering the system. This reduces the overall heating energy requirement, partially offsetting the increased energy demand from regenerating larger amounts of functional material used for high-capacity trapping.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system effectively utilizes heated air for space heating, enhancing energy efficiency by selectively removing moisture and returning the heated air to the vehicle interior, thus reducing energy waste.
Implementation Method 1
the partition walls have a PTC property
Implementation Method 2
it can easily heat the functional material
Implementation Method 3
a steam trap is provided in a pipe through which air containing moisture released by regeneration is circulated
Implementation Method 4
components to be removed such as CO2 and moisture (water vapor) in the air in the vehicle interior are trapped by a functional material such as an adsorbent
Implementation Method 5
the components to be removed are then reacted or desorbed by heating to discharge them to the vehicle exterior and regenerate the functional material
Data Source
AI summary
A vehicle air conditioning system includes: a dehumidifying device; a power source; an inflow pipe for allowing air from a vehicle interior or a vehicle exterior to flow into the dehumidifying device; a first outflow pipe for returning the air that has been dehumidified by the dehumidifying device to the vehicle interior; a second outflow pipe through which the air containing moisture released by a regeneration process of the dehumidifying device is circulated; and a switching valve provided at a branch portion between the first outflow pipe and the second outflow pipe, the switching valve being capable of switching the flow of the air to the first outflow pipe or the second outflow pipe. A steam trap is provided in the second outflow pipe. The second outflow pipe merges with the first outflow pipe on a downstream side of the steam trap.