Charge Air Subcooling – Enabler for Improved Driveability and Fuel Economy

Authors

Dr. rer. nat. A. Eilemann, MAHLE Behr GmbH & Co. KG, Stuttgart; Dr.-Ing. P. Wieske,
Dr. sc. techn. M. Warth, MAHLE International GmbH, Stuttgart; Dipl.-Ing. J. Stehlig, MAHLE Filtersysteme GmbH, Stuttgart

Year

2015

Print Info

Fortschritt-Berichte VDI, Reihe 12, Nr. 783

Summary

In order to improve the straight line performance of the vehicle, the surplus capacity of the A/C refrigerant circuit available after the passenger compartment has been cooled, can be used to cool the charge air below the ambient temperature. Initial dynamometer and vehicle test results from a mid-sized vehicle with three-cylinder engine, have demonstrated the promising potential for charge air subcooling. The current development at MAHLE has now been changed to focus on the integration and optimization of the components in the existing vehicle with a more series production representative layout. To this end, the additional charge air cooling stage is completely integrated in the intake manifold, thereby making the subcooled charge air available faster and reducing pressure loss.