Diesel Electric Vehicles

Mike Warmack
HC 399 Hybrid, Electric, and Fuel Cell Vehicles
November 18, 2008

Diesel 101
What is diesel?
Petroleum diesel (petrodiesel) is a heavy distillate
from crude oil
Chemical composition ranges from C9H20 to C16H34
Gasoline ranges between C5H12 and C8H18
Used in diesel engines, designed by Rudolf Diesel in
1892
Can alternatively be produced from biomass, coal
liquidification

walbrofuelpump.org, Retrieved 11/11/08

Diesel 102
How does it compare to gasoline?
Diesel

Gasoline

Energy content

129,000 BTU

117,000 BTU

Specific gravity

7.09 lbs. / US
gal.
20 : 1

6.01 lbs. / US
gal.
8:1

Engine
compression
Current avg. price $2.94 / US
Proportional cost gallon
61 % from
Engine efficiency

crude
40 %

$2.22 / US
Gallon
67 % from

crude
25 % (Otto
Cycle)

eia.doe.gov, afdc.energy.gov, encarta.msn.com Retrieved 11/11/08

Can be produced from hydrocarbons with

transesterification
Not as explosive as gasoline, fewer vapors

Diesel 103
How does it work?
Similar to a gasoline engines cycles:
Intake pulls in air and fuel into the cylinder
Compression piston reduces the volume
Ignition a spark plug ignites the gas and volume
expands
o No spark plug in diesel, combusts under higher
compression
Exhaust piston reduces the volume with valves
open

nwwin.com Retrieved 11/11/08

Diesel 201
What are the advantages of using diesel?

Fuel Economy
Higher compression ratio results in more efficient
combustion
Slower depreciation
Diesel power trains tend to last longer
More torque and power
Good for acceleration and towing
Longer cylinder stroke for compression, larger
crankshaft
Tax benefits
Qualify for similar alternative vehicle tax incentives
as hybrids
~ $1,500 tax credit
Biofuels are easy to use
Any diesel vehicle can use biodiesel with simple
conversion kit

Diesel 202
What are the disadvantages of using diesel?

Vehicle availability (private vehicles)

Higher emission standards are difficult to design for
Fuel availability
Not all service stations carry diesel (private
vehicles)
US refineries produce less diesel, smaller supply
Emissions
Less CO2 emissions from more efficient combustion
Particulate and NOx emissions are greater
Price
In private vehicles, diesel can cost $1K-5K more
Emissions controls are expensive
Diesel fuel is taxed more in the United States
autos.yahoo.com Retrieved 11/17/08

Common Diesels
Pickup Trucks
Mass
Transportation

motortrend.com, Retrieved 11/17/08

Commercial
Trucking
portlandonline.com, Retrieved 11/17/08

Need to haul large loads

Higher torque for towing
Better fuel economy for
power
driverscdlstaffing.com, Retrieved 11/17/08

Diesel-Electric 101
What is diesel-electric?
The diesel-electric system is usually serial
Not necessarily hybrid, no energy storage
A diesel engine drives a electric generator
Electric motors are directly connected to propulsion
Why not directly connect the engine to propulsion?
Complex systems necessary to connect to one
engine
Extensive gearing required to stay in power band
Why is diesel-electric used?
The diesel is used to generate electricity efficiently
Electric motors dont need gearing to be efficient

Common Diesel-Electrics
Shipping Azimuth
Thrusters

siemens.com, Retrieved 11/17/08

Rail
Locomotives

Lostworld.pair.com, Retrieved 11/17/08

Large chassis Able to house equipment

Large loads Need lots of power
Multiple drives Propellers, drive axels
Less aesthetic For industrial use
Diesel-electric meets all of their needs

Diesel-Electric Hybrids
Are they different than gasoline-electric hybrids?
Recapture kinetic energy and store for later use
Monitor idling
Will operate in a serial hybrid system
About 25% less fuel consumption
Why current diesel-electrics are ideal for hybrid
technology
Able to accommodate additional equipment
Not as concerned about size
Matches efficiency with more efficiency
Other benefits
Smaller engine that is only run at maximum
efficiency
Improved acceleration
Quieter, no idling, no startup plume
jcwinnie.biz, Retrieved
11/17/08

Diesel-Electric Hybrid
Buses

jcwinnie.biz, Retrieved 11/17/08

Similar buses used in Seattle, San Francisco,

Eugene

Diesel-Electric Hybrid
Projected benefits ofBuses
diesel-electric hybrid buses
37% less CO
2

Up to 50% less nitrogen oxide

Up to 50% less particulates
About 25% less fuel consumption
Problems
Not a mature market
Design not perfected
Maintenance facilities will need to train on new tech
jcwinnie.biz, Retrieved
11/17/08

DE Hybrid Locomotives
Railpower Technologies Green Goat
Rail yard switch locomotive
High idle time, stop and go
2000 HP
80% reduction of NOx
In production

railpower.com, Retrieved 11/17/08

GE Ecomagination Locomotive
Long-haul locomotive
Equivalent to removing 1/3
cars
Not in production

ge.ecomagination.com, Retrieved
11/17/08

Personal Diesel Hybrids

Volkswagen Golf TDI
Hybrid
Parallel hybrid
70 mpg
Realistic concept
wired.com, Retrieved 11/17/08

Citeron C4
Parallel/Dual
mode
69 mpg
Europe in 2010
autoblog.com, Retrieved 11/17/08

DE Thoughts
Why not invest in all-electrics?

Gap between oil economy and next step

Progression in efficiency
Gasoline -> diesel
Diesel -> diesel-electric
Diesel-electric -> DE hybrids
DE hybrids -> full-electric
Proven technology
Minimal change in infrastructure
Service stations
Delivery
Refining
Better range than electric vehicles
Diesel easier to use in extreme environments
Commercial will resist /never change to 100%
electric
Not economic

DE Thoughts
Diesel vs. ethanol

Ethanol has about half efficiency of gasoline, third of

diesel
Expensive engine controls to convert to
ethanol/flexfuel
Biodiesel can be used with minimal conversion to
engines
Ethanol has similar profile to gasoline and is closed
cycle
Biodiesel can be a closed cycle process
Diesel emissions controls can limit particulates, NOx

Higher diesel cost related to use

Higher cost will encourage efficiency

In turn, better technology
Also, more efficient means of use (train vs. truck)
Greater awareness of environmental impacts

DE Websites

http://www.hybridcars.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diesel-electric
http://ge.ecomagination.com
http://www.tdiclub.com/
http://www.edmunds.com/
http://www.vw.com/
http://www.autobloggreen.com/