Impact of Thermal Insulation on Vehicle Cabin Heat Loads and Energy Use

A car's passenger cabin's heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system is the biggest auxiliary charge, other than the primary traction charge. It may cause a vehicle with a motor to increase its energy consumption by up to 25%. The main factor contributing to the passenger compartment's excessive warmth is the car's exposure to maximum sun radiation. The goal of this study is to predict the thermal loads of the studied vehicle. Indeed, energy-saving measures such as using various types of insulating and storing materials have been implemented in this paper to predict their impact on the vehicle's interior thermal loads. The inside fluid domain of a cabin was modeled and simulated using CATIA and FLUENT to investigate the temperature drop in the car's cabin based on their thermal characteristics. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations were used Using a vehicle cabin CFD model that was verified by climatic measurements, simulation information covering the full range of boundary conditions that affect thermal loads was methodically generated. The results strongly supported the CFD study, highlighting its effectiveness in analyzing the key parameters impacting the internal thermal loads. They reveal that aerogel polymers are distinguished by a significantly superior insulating capacity, reducing energy consumption by up to 40% compared to existing materials. These findings pave the way for adopting highly economical and well-optimized vehicles.