Realistic U.S. Long-Haul Drive Cycle for Vehicle Simulations, Costing, and Emissions Analysis

Abstract

Although heavy-duty trucks constitute the backbone of freight transportation in the United States, they also contribute significantly to greenhouse gas emissions. Various alternative powertrains to reduce emissions have been assessed, but few specific to U.S. long-haul applications with a consistent basis of assumptions. To enable a more accurate assessment for all stakeholders, a representative drive cycle for long-haul truck operations in the United States is introduced (USLHC8) for modeling and simulation purposes. This was generated from 58,000 mi of real driving data through a unique random microtrip selection algorithm. USLHC8 covers a total driving time of 10 h 47 min, an average vehicle speed of 55.58 mph, and road grade ranging from −6% to +6%. To establish a benchmark for further powertrain comparisons, a vehicle-level simulation of a conventional diesel powertrain was paired with USLHC8. Benchmarks are presented for fuel consumption, well-to-wheel emissions, and total cost to society under different scenarios (present-day, mid-term, and long-term).