USE OF GT-SUITE TO STUDY PERFORMANCE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE (ICE) AND HYBRID ELECTRIC VEHICLE (HEV) POWERTRAINS

Abstract

Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEVs) are receiving a great deal of interest around the world due to not only their promise of higher energy efficiency and reduced highway emissions, but also their ability to overcome the range limitations inherent in a purely electric automobile. In a hybrid powertrain, energy is stored as a petroleum fuel and in an electrical storage device, such as a battery pack, and is converted to mechanical energy by an internal combustion engine (ICE) and an electric motor (EM), respectively. The EM is used to improve energy efficiency and vehicle emissions while the ICE provides extended range capability. Computer simulation is a valuable tool for analyzing hardware components and predicting vehicle performance with different powertrain configurations. In this work a traditional ICE operated vehicle is compared to several hybrid versions of the same vehicle, all modeled using GT-Suite. A variety of standard driving cycles are considered, among them the Federal Test Procedure (FTP) for city driving, the Highway Fuel Economy Test (HWY), the high acceleration aggressive driving schedule (US06) that is often identified by the Supplemental FTP, and the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC). This study considers a rule-based energy management strategy for power splitting in the hybrid powertrain models. ICE only and hybrid modes are compared based on average as well as instantaneous performance. The overall fuel economy, energy consumption and losses in the ICE and HEV powertrain models are monitored and compared based on average performance, and a comprehensive energy analysis is performed to track energy sources and sinks. The paper results reveal the benefits of HEVs in terms of reduced fuel energy consumption and improved fuel economy.