Cooling effect potential from liquefied petroleum gas flow in the fuel line of vehicle

Abstract

This paper presents a simulation of the potential cooling effect that can be harvested from the Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) phase change process on the fuel line before being supplied to the combustion chamber. The composition of LPG used was obtained from the average test result of the samples taken periodically in the fuel line with a special gas syringe which were then injected into Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GCMS). Effect of fluctuations of LPG composition was also analysed on the energy delivery to the combustion chamber. Furthermore, simulation results showed that the potential cooling that may be harvested from the LPG fuel system on a 2000 cm3 engine was 1.4 kW in the eco-driving mode to be used as a cabin cooler. For a small passenger car that has a cooling load of 3.5 kW, this means the cooling effect from the fuel system is capable of contributing 40% to the cooling load. In conclusion, this potential is very promising and can be applied to countries that not do have the winter experience.