GreenCar Magazine » Diesel

New Report Highlights the Benefits of Hybrid Diesel Technology

admin — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 14:39:01 +0000

Historically diesel vehicles ( cars and small trucks) have never been as popular with U.S. consumers as they have with European ones. Diesel technology itself offers a considerably higher engine efficiency than spark ignition internal combustion engines but this alone has not in the past spurred North American sales. A new study recently completed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory hopes to speed up market acceptance of hybrid diesel technology by highlighting it’s fuel economy and performance benefits.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has collected and analyzed fuel economy, maintenance and other vehicle performance data from UPS’s first generation hybrid diesel step delivery vans powered by an Eaton Corp. electric hybrid propulsion system. The diesel hybrid delivery vans improved the on-road fuel economy by 28.9 percent resulting in a 15 percent improvement in total cost per mile while maintaining similar reliability and operational performance as compared to conventional vehicles.

Funded by the DOE’s Advanced Vehicle Testing Activity (AVTA), NREL’s Fleet Test & Evaluation (FT&E) team performed a 12-month evaluation of six of these hybrid vans at a UPS location in Phoenix.

The report released this week details the year-long demonstration project, including how the FT&E team collected and analyzed fuel economy, maintenance and other vehicle performance data on the vans, which are being used in delivery service. The project also tested a conventional and hybrid delivery van in NREL’s ReFUEL laboratory in Denver, Colo., and documented fuel economy and emissions performance on various test cycles.

Robert Hall, UPS director of maintenance and engineering, said he hopes the evaluation will speed up market acceptance of hybrid diesel systems. “NREL’s report on the performance of our hybrid delivery vehicles is helping make this type of energy-efficient vehicle a standard in the industry.”

Eaton Corp. provided the hybrid propulsion systems for the vehicles, which were manufactured by Freightliner Corp. The hybrid system employs an Eaton automated transmission with an integrated motor/generator and advanced lithium ion batteries. Both the Freightliner hybrid model and the conventional model use a Mercedes-Benz MBE 904 four-cylinder diesel engine. UPS has recently ordered an additional 200 Eaton hybrid electric powered vans.

The Eaton hybrid system was developed in part under a previous $7.5 million, 33-month contract from DOE’s Advanced Heavy Hybrid Propulsion System program.

“Having provided funding for the development of the Eaton hybrid system, DOE was eager to participate in testing the system in a commercial fleet,” Lee Slezak, DOE’s AVTA program manager said. “Our goal is to help develop more efficient vehicle technologies and then document their on-road performance.”

The evaluation of UPS’ new diesel hybrid vans follows a 2002 UPS/DOE demonstration of 13 compressed natural gas delivery vehicles in UPS’ Hartford, Conn., fleet. NREL’s FT&E team also provided direction and analysis on that project. A second generation study is currently planned for 2010 to look at more advanced versions of the Eaton hybrid in operation within the UPS fleet.

NREL is DOE’s primary national laboratory for renewable energy and energy efficiency research and development. NREL is operated for DOE by The Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC.

UPS is the world’s largest package delivery company and a global leader in supply chain services, offering an extensive range of options for synchronizing the movement of goods, information and funds. Headquartered in Atlanta, Ga., UPS serves more than 200 countries and territories worldwide. For more information on UPS, contact Lynnette McIntire 404-828-7895

Sanyo to Provide Nickel Metal Hydride Battery for Peugeot Citroën Diesel Hybrids

admin — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:36:17 +0000

SANYO Electric Co., Ltd. (SANYO), a world leader in battery technology, has announced that the company will supply the nickel metal hydride (Ni-MH) battery systems for hybrid electric vehicles (HEV) to PSA Peugeot Citroën, one of the largest car manufacturers in Europe. PSA Peugeot Citroën will equip these battery systems to its Hybrid Diesel Technology – Hybrid4 – that will be factory fitted first on the crossover “Peugeot 3008 Hybrid4” and on the “Citroen DS5 Hybrid4”, to be manufactured in 2011.

　Given the growing public concern for environmental protection, SANYO is strengthening its business by intensively developing rechargeable batteries for environmentally friendly vehicles, which are expected to see a surge in demand in the coming years. In addition to providing HEV Ni-MH batteries to Ford and Honda, SANYO has been carrying out joint development with Volkswagen for next-generation Ni-MH battery systems since January 2006, and lithium-ion battery systems since May 2008.

　SANYO will continue to accelerate the development and marketing of high performance battery systems and globally expand its business in rechargeable batteries used in environmentally friendly vehicles

The Audi A4 3.0 TDI Clean Diesel Quattro 34.49 MPG Average

admin — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 21:27:52 +0000

A4 3TDI

Using what the company considers as the world’s cleanest diesel technology, the 3.0 TDI clean diesel already meets the Euro 6 emission standard not scheduled to enter into force until 2014. Having debuted in the Audi Q7, the innovative engine is now coming to the A4. The powerful TDI is not only extremely clean, it is also highly efficient, using only 6.7 liters of fuel per 100 km (35.11 US mpg) in the EU cycle.

The technology package of the 3.0 TDI clean diesel quattro comprises the engine itself and the highly efficient exhaust gas after-treatment system. A new common rail injection system that develops pressures of up to 2,000 bar, innovative combustion chamber pressure sensors and an ultra-high-performance exhaust gas recirculation system ensure highly efficient combustion which produces minimal raw emissions.

A novel DeNOX catalytic converter at the end of the exhaust system reduces nitrogen oxides. Just upstream of it, a pump injects an aqueous additive named AdBlue into the hot exhaust flow, where this solution decomposes into ammonia, which splits the nitrogen oxides into nitrogen and water. The tank is large enough that the driver never has to refill it. This is done instead by the Audi dealership during scheduled maintenance.

Using the world’s cleanest diesel technology, the Audi A4 3.0 TDI clean diesel quattro meets the Euro 6 emission standard announced for 2014. It is also very fuel-efficient, averaging only 6.7 liters (Avant: 6.8 liters) of fuel per 100 km (35.11 and 34.59 US mpg).

The innovative V6 TDI engine makes the A4 a powerful performer, needing only 6.2 seconds (Avant: 6.3 seconds) to go from zero to 100 km/h (62.14 mph). Top speed is electronically governed to 250 km/h (155.34 mph). The combination with the six-speed tiptronic and quattro permanent all-wheel drive ensures a high degree of comfort and superior traction