Share

A generic modeling framework for duty cycle simulations of transport refrigeration units.

Number: 2116

Author(s) : DHUMANE R., STINSON M.

Summary

Transport refrigeration is in the midst of a transformation towards electrification. Electrification will not only reduce direct vehicle carbon emissions but also mitigate additional indirect carbon emissions by reducing food losses through more consistent regulation of cargo temperature. However, one drawback is that electrified systems run on batteries,
which take significantly longer to recharge than fuels. Therefore, accurately predicting the total energy required for trips is becoming increasingly important in order to enable informed decision-making by various stakeholders related to the electrified fleet. The trip of an electric transport refrigeration system (eTRU) can vary based on factors such
as weather conditions, controller setpoint and average vehicle speed. Physics-based predictive models of eTRU are indispensable for range forecasting and fleet planning.
The present article introduces a Modelica based methodology for conducting simulations and facilitating informed decision-making related to eTRU. The details of the different assumptions and equations used in developing component models like the (cargo) box, refrigeration system and the controller are provided. A simple ON-OFF controller
model with hysteresis is connected to the box and refrigeration system models to simulate the instantaneous power consumption of the eTRU. By integrating the instantaneous power consumption over the weather and the route profile of the trip, total energy consumption of the eTRU for the trip is obtained. The total energy consumption of the trip is divided
into the precooling portion and the trip portion. It can be observed that using the shore power (grid electricity) for precooling can increase the vehicle trip range by up to 33.1%. A parametric study is conducted on different trip-related parameters, such as door opening frequency and duration, to guide energy-efficient practices for the crew in order to
maximize the vehicle trip range. Additionally, a parametric study of control parameters, such as the restart band width of the ON-OFF controller and the box thermal resistance from aging, is conducted to demonstrate applicability of the simulation framework.

Available documents

Format PDF

Pages: 10 p.

Available

Free

Download

Details

  • Original title: A generic modeling framework for duty cycle simulations of transport refrigeration units.
  • Record ID : 30032981
  • Languages: English
  • Source: 2024 Purdue Conferences. 20th International Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Conference at Purdue.
  • Publication date: 2024/07/17

Links


See other articles from the proceedings (104)
See the conference proceedings

Indexing