Pure Electric Car Heater Working Principle

The heating system of pure electric vehicles mainly relies on electric heating to provide warm air in the car, rather than using the heat of engine coolant as in traditional fuel vehicles. So, how does the warm air of a pure electric car work? The auto repair management system will reveal the heating principle of pure electric vehicles for you.

At present, the air-conditioning heating system of pure electric vehicles is mainly divided into PTC thermistor heater and heat pump system. There are significant differences in the working principles of these two different types of heating systems.

The heat generation principle of PTC thermistor heating system is relatively simple and easy to understand. Its working principle is similar to that of electric furnace wire, which generates heat through current flowing through resistance. The only difference lies in the material of resistance. Electric furnaces usually use ordinary resistance wires, while PTC used in pure electric vehicles is a semiconductor thermistor.

PTC heater has been widely used in pure electric vehicles (especially low-end models) because of its simple structure, low cost and fast heating. Of course, there are some exceptions, such as the mid-to-high-end NIO ES8, which still uses PTC heating systems and is equipped with two PTC heaters.

Because PTC heaters have obvious shortcomings, including low heat utilization and high power consumption, they have a great impact on the cruising range of pure electric vehicles. Therefore, in order to reduce the impact of heating system on cruising range, some middle and high-end pure electric vehicles have to adopt heat pump air conditioning system. This allows for a more efficient use of energy while providing a good heating effect.

The function of the heat pump is to transfer the heat energy of the low temperature heat source to the high temperature heat source, and its working principle is similar to that of the air conditioning refrigeration system, except that the direction of heat transfer is opposite to that of the air conditioning refrigeration. Air conditioning cooling, indoor heat transfer to the outside, and heat pump heating system is the heat transfer outside the car to the car. Heat pump heating systems are usually integrated with air conditioning and refrigeration systems, and the heat transfer path is controlled by valves. This fusion system can extract heat from indoor or outdoor air and transfer it inside or outside the car as needed. This improves the energy efficiency and energy-saving performance of the vehicle heating system.

In addition, the heat pump system can effectively utilize the preheating function of the power battery cooling system when heating, which is similar to the heating system of a traditional automobile. Therefore, compared to PTC heaters, heat pump systems have higher thermal efficiency, lower energy consumption, and relatively little impact on cruising range. However, the heat pump system also has obvious disadvantages: complex structure, high cost, slow heating speed, especially in low temperature conditions, the heating effect is poor.

Based on the above analysis, some high-end pure electric vehicles usually adopt a hybrid mode of heat pump and PTC in order to ensure the temperature inside the compartment. At the beginning of the vehicle, due to the low temperature of the power battery cooling system, the PTC heater is turned on for preheating. When the coolant temperature rises, start the heat pump heating system again. This hybrid mode can make full use of the advantages of both, improve heating efficiency, reduce energy consumption, and ensure comfortable temperature in the compartment.

Written at the end: whether it is PTC heating or heat pump system, they directly consume the electric energy of the vehicle battery to generate heat, so the use of heating in cold weather will significantly increase the energy consumption of electric vehicles and affect the cruising range.