SLUAAY5 December 2024 UCC21551-Q1
The transition from Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) vehicles to electric vehicles (EV) comes with a lot of opportunities and challenges. It is crucial for automakers to make EV subsystems and end vehicles that are efficient and cost-competitive to ICEs if they want mass adoption of their product. Increasing overall subsystem efficiency helps maximize drive range, and optimizing costs throughout the supply chain makes EVs attractive to the end user. A system that automakers must learn how to make more efficient and cost-effective is the thermal management system of the EV. In an EV, the cooling process is similar to the that of an ICE or residential systems via using a compressor to blow cold air through the coolant. However, when it comes to heating, a different approach must be used. ICEs can capture and use heat from the engine to pass through the coolant or directly through the cabin. But when it comes to EVs, there is no engine. And, the traction motor is too efficient to generate enough residual heat fast enough to capture for heating the coolant or cabin. So, one method commonly used to either supply additional heat or take full responsibly of heating the coolant/cabin in EVs is via positive temperature coefficient (PTC) heaters.