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Reducing CO 2 Emissions of Hybrid Heavy-Duty Trucks and Buses: Paving the Transition to Low-Carbon Transport

Author

Listed:
  • Nikiforos Zacharof

    (Laboratory of Applied Thermodynamics, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece)

  • Evangelos Bitsanis

    (Joint Research Centre of European Commission, 21027 Ispra, Italy)

  • Stijn Broekaert

    (Joint Research Centre of European Commission, 21027 Ispra, Italy)

  • Georgios Fontaras

    (Joint Research Centre of European Commission, 21027 Ispra, Italy)

Abstract

This study investigates the CO 2 reduction potential of powertrain hybridisation on heavy-duty lorries and city buses. The analysis considers modern parallel and serial hybrid architectures, assessing their efficiency and limits in CO 2 emission reduction through vehicle simulation in VECTO, which is the official tool of the European Commission for calculating heavy-duty vehicle fuel and energy consumption. The results reveal distinct trends for each vehicle type and architecture. In lorries, more significant improvements are observed in urban delivery profiles, reaching up to ~16%, indicating the benefits of hybridisation in transient conditions with energy recuperation opportunities. City buses, particularly those with serial architectures, exhibit significant emission reductions that reach 36%, making them suitable for urban environments. The optimisation of electric motor size and performance plays a crucial role in achieving emission reductions, while battery capacity must be carefully considered to avoid adverse effects. For lorries in urban delivery use, further improvements of 17.5% can be achieved by utilising a 160 kW engine motor and 30 kWh battery. Buses are already quite well optimised, with serial architecture presenting the highest benefits with a 120 kW electric motor and a battery of 11 kWh. Future research should focus on supercapacitors and gearboxes to improve efficiency at higher vehicle speeds and assess hybridisation potential in interurban coach travel. The heavy-duty vehicle sector can make significant strides towards low-carbon transport by maximising hybrid powertrain efficiency and emission reductions.

Suggested Citation

  • Nikiforos Zacharof & Evangelos Bitsanis & Stijn Broekaert & Georgios Fontaras, 2024. "Reducing CO 2 Emissions of Hybrid Heavy-Duty Trucks and Buses: Paving the Transition to Low-Carbon Transport," Energies, MDPI, vol. 17(2), pages 1-26, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:17:y:2024:i:2:p:286-:d:1314074
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Guo, Jiadong & Ge, Yunshan & Hao, Lijun & Tan, Jianwei & Peng, Zihang & Zhang, Chuanzhen, 2015. "Comparison of real-world fuel economy and emissions from parallel hybrid and conventional diesel buses fitted with selective catalytic reduction systems," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 159(C), pages 433-441.
    2. Zhang, Shaojun & Wu, Ye & Liu, Huan & Huang, Ruikun & Yang, Liuhanzi & Li, Zhenhua & Fu, Lixin & Hao, Jiming, 2014. "Real-world fuel consumption and CO2 emissions of urban public buses in Beijing," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 1645-1655.
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