An adsorption air conditioning system to integrate with the recent development of emission control for heavy-duty vehicles

The recent development to control the emissions of large diesel engines has provided opportunities for heat-driven cooling methods in vehicles. An adsorption air conditioning system is therefore proposed in this work for heavy-duty truck application. This system is powered by engine waste heat when the engine of a truck is running. When the engine is off, it can be operated by fuel fired heaters, a newly implemented technology to reduce truck idling. Hence, this system can not only reduce engine emissions but also improve the overall energy efficiency. A lumped parameter model of the system using zeolite-water as its working pair is developed, and the adsorption capacity of zeolite is simulated with the linear driving force model. The dynamic performance of the system and a parametric study on adsorbent mass transfer, operating temperatures and cycle operating periods are presented. Alternative working pairs and the potential to commercialize the system are also discussed. This system may be designed to satisfy the cooling requirement for idle reduction of long-haul trucks.

► The recent development to control the emissions of diesel engines has provided opportunities for heat-driven cooling methods in vehicles.
► An adsorption air conditioning system to integrate with the recent emission control devices is studied for heavy-duty truck applications.
► The emission control components applicable to the adsorption system are reviewed and a modular design of the system is presented.
► A model of the system using zeolite and water as its working pair is developed to study the dynamic performance and parametric effects.
► Alternative working pairs and the potential to commercialize the system are also discussed.