Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Availability

Open Access Dissertation

Keywords

Hybrid electric vehicles--Design and construction;

Abstract

Depleting resources of fossil fuel, climate change impacts, high oil prices, and strict emission requirements are leading to the research on efficient, environmentally friendly, and lowered fossil fuel dependent solutions in the transportation field. While a number of studies used computer modeling and simulation tools to investigate hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), very few attempted to model and simulate a dual-engine hybrid vehicle. Designing a vehicle engine to meet energy needs in the fully loaded condition is not an optimal solution for manufacturers and customers. The larger the engine, the higher the manufacturing costs for companies, and higher fuel consumption for customers. The integration of dual-engine hybrid technology can help to solve this problem.

The objective of this study was to design and simulate a dual-engine hybrid electric vehicle (DE-HEV) model to investigate whether it can be a fuel efficient and environmentally friendly solution without sacrificing vehicle performance. The simulated DE-HEV uses two small engines instead of one large engine. In the simulated design, a smaller single engine supplies the power if the energy need is not more than a single engine can provide. The second engine turns on when the power demand is greater than the single engine can supply.

Working models for the DE-HEV components, such as an electric motor, generator, battery, and the controller have been developed using the Matlab/Simulink™ simulation package. Each model was validated with test data from the literature. Appropriate power management strategy has been developed to accommodate the dual engine design. Fuel-efficiency, overall performance, and manufacturing cost for the simulated DE-HEV model have been compared against current commercial models.

Simulation results showed that DE-HEV has between a 2% to 6% higher efficiency than comparable HEVs. Cost analysis results showed that the manufacturing cost of DE-HEV is 11% higher. Performance of the vehicle was tested with standard drive cycles. Test results are satisfactory; although there was significant increase in fuel-efficiency, because of its higher initial manufacturing cost, maintenance, and complexity, DE-HEVs may have challenges in the short term. However, with expected decreases in manufacturing costs of battery storage and power electronics technology, the implementation of DE-HEVs can be feasible transportation options in the near future.

Year of Submission

2012

Year of Award

2005 Award

Department

Department of Industrial Technology

First Advisor

Recayi Pecen, Committee Chair

Date Original

7-2012

Object Description

1 PDF file (xi, 131 pages)

Language

en

File Format

application/pdf

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