Jackly Muriban, Erdiwansyah, Galang Sandy Prayogo, Nuzul Hidayat, Mohd Faizal Jamlos, Rizalman Mamat
The shift toward sustainable automotive technologies has increased the adoption of low-GWP refrigerants such as hydrofluoroolefins (HFOs). Despite their environmental benefits, HFOs often result in lower cooling performance and greater efficiency losses. This preliminary experimental work investigates graphene nanoplatelet (GNP)-based nanolubricants as a passive enhancement strategy for automotive vapour-compression refrigeration (VCR) systems. A 0.05 vol% GNP/POE nanolubricant was prepared using a two-step dispersion method, and system performance was evaluated under three configurations, specifically POE/R134a, POE/R1234ze(E), and GNP/POE/R1234ze(E). Performance metrics included cooling capacity, saturation pressure ratio, pressure characteristics, and suction and discharge temperatures. The GNP nanolubricants improved cooling capacity by up to 35.34% and reduced pressure ratio by 15.84% compared with the baseline. In addition, the GNP/POE nanolubricant enhanced compressor volumetric efficiency by an average of 12.97%, increased the COP by 18.16%, and reduced compressor power consumption by 26.87% compared with the R134a baseline. The results confirm that GNP/POE nanolubricants enhance heat transfer and thermodynamic efficiency, supporting their potential application in next-generation, ultra-low-GWP automotive air-conditioning applications. Unlike previous studies that primarily focus on refrigerant-phase nanoparticle dispersion or system-level modifications, this work introduces a lubricant-phase nanostructuring approach using graphene nanoplatelets and establishes a direct thermodynamic linkage between nanoscale behaviour and system-level performance in an automotive electrically driven compressor system. © 2026 Indian Chemical Society.
Faculty of Mechanical & Automotive Engineering Technology, Universiti Malaysia Pahang Al-Sultan Abdullah, 26600, Malaysia; Centre for Research and Innovation, Jabatan Pendidikan Politeknik dan Kolej Komuniti, Putrajaya, 62100, Malaysia; Department of Mechanical Engineering, Politeknik Negeri Banyuwangi, 68461, Indonesia; Department of Automotive Engineering, Universitas Negeri Padang, 25171, Indonesia; Faculty of Electrical & Electronics Engineering Technology, Universiti Malaysia Pahang Al-Sultan Abdullah, 26600, Malaysia; Centre for Advanced Mobility and Aerospace, Universiti Malaysia Pahang Al-Sultan Abdullah, 26600, Malaysia; Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Management, Universitas Serambi Mekkah, Banda Aceh, 23245, Indonesia
