Hybrid electric vehicle

A hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) is a type of hybrid vehicle and electric vehicle that combines a
conventional internal combustion engine (ICE) propulsion system with an electric propulsion
system. The presence of the electric powertrain is intended to achieve either better fuel
economy than a conventional vehicle or better performance. There are a variety of HEV types,
and the degree to which they function as EVs varies as well. Modern HEVs make use of
efficiency-improving technologies such as regenerative brakes, which converts the
vehicle's kinetic energy into electric energy to charge the battery, rather than wasting it as heat
energy as conventional brakes do. Some varieties of HEVs use their internal combustion engine
to generate electricity by spinning an electrical generator (this combination is known as a motor
generator), to either recharge their batteries or to directly power the electric drive motors. Many
HEVs reduce idle emissions by shutting down the ICE at idle and restarting it when needed; this
is known as a start-stop system. A hybrid-electric produces less emissions from its ICE than a
comparably sized gasoline car, since an HEV's gasoline engine is usually smaller than a
comparably sized pure gasoline-burning vehicle (natural gas and propane fuels produce lower
emissions) and if not used to directly drive the car, can be geared to run at maximum efficiency,
further improving fuel economy.

Classification

Types of powertrain
Hybrid electric vehicles can be classified according to the way in which power is supplied to the
drivetrain:

In parallel hybrids, the ICE and the electric motor are both connected to the
mechanical transmission and can simultaneously transmit power to drive the wheels, usually
through a conventional transmission. The internal combustion engine of many parallel hybrids
can also act as a generator for supplemental recharging. Currently, commercialized parallel
hybrids use a full size combustion engine with a single, small (<20 kW) electric motor and small
battery pack as the electric motor is designed to supplement the main engine, not to be the sole
source of motive power from launch. Parallel hybrids are more efficient than comparable non-
hybrid vehicles especially during urban stop-and-go conditions where the electric motor is
permitted to contribute and during highway operation.

In series hybrids, only the electric motor drives the drivetrain, and a smaller ICE works as
a generator to power the electric motor or to recharge the batteries. They also usually have a
larger battery pack than parallel hybrids, making them more expensive. Once the batteries are
low, the small combustion engine can generate power at its optimum settings at all times, making
them more efficient in extensive city driving
Power-split hybrids have the benefits of a combination of series and parallel characteristics. As a
result, they are more efficient overall, because series hybrids tend to be more efficient at lower
speeds and parallel tend to be more efficient at high speeds; however, the cost of power-split
hybrid is higher than a pure parallel.
In each of the hybrids above it is common to use regenerative braking to recharge the batteries.
Types by degree of hybridization
Full hybrid, sometimes also called a strong hybrid, is a vehicle that can run on just the engine,
just the batteries, or a combination of both. These cars can be moved forward on battery power
alone. A large, high-capacity battery pack is needed for battery-only operation. These vehicles
have a split power path allowing greater flexibility in the drivetrain by interconverting
mechanical and electrical power, at some cost in complexity.

Mild hybrid, is a vehicle that cannot be driven solely on its electric motor, because the electric
motor does not have enough power to propel the vehicle on its own .Mild hybrids only include
some of the features found in hybrid technology, and usually achieve limited fuel consumption
savings, up to 15 percent in urban driving and 8 to 10 percent overall cycle. A mild hybrid is
essentially a conventional vehicle with oversize starter motor, allowing the engine to be turned
off whenever the car is coasting, braking, or stopped, yet restart quickly and cleanly. The motor
is often mounted between the engine and transmission, taking the place of the torque converter,
and is used to supply additional propulsion energy when accelerating. Accessories can continue
to run on electrical power while the gasoline engine is off, and as in other hybrid designs, the
motor is used for regenerative braking to recapture energy. As compared to full hybrids, mild
hybrids have smaller batteries and a smaller, weaker motor/generator, which allows
manufacturers to reduce cost and weight.

Plug-in hybrids (PHEVs)

A plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV), also known as a plug-in hybrid, is a hybrid electric
vehicle with rechargeable batteries that can be restored to full charge by connecting a plug to an
external electric power source. A PHEV shares the characteristics of both a conventional hybrid
electric vehicle, having an electric motor and an internal combustion engine; and of an all-
electric vehicle, also having a plug to connect to the electrical grid. PHEVs have a much
larger all-electric range as compared to conventional gasoline-electric hybrids, and also eliminate
the "range anxiety" associated with all-electric vehicles, because the combustion engine works as
a backup when the batteries are depleted.

Regenerative brake
A regenerative brake is an energy recovery mechanism which slows a vehicle or object by
converting its kinetic energy into a form which can be either used immediately or stored until
needed. This contrasts with conventional braking systems, where the excess kinetic energy is
converted to heat by friction in the brakes and therefore wasted. In addition to improving the
overall efficiency of the vehicle, regeneration can also greatly extend the life of the braking
system as its parts do not wear as quickly.

Regenerative brake has two main parts

Conversion to electric energy: the motor as a generator

Vehicles propelled by electric motors use the motor as a generator when using regenerative
braking: it is operated as a generator during braking and its output is supplied to an electrical
load; the transfer of energy to the load provides the braking effect.

Conversion to mechanical energy

Kinetic energy recovery systems (KERS) were used for the motor sport Formula One's 2009 season, and are
under development for road vehicles. The concept of transferring the vehicles kinetic energy using flywheel
energy storage was postulated by physicist Richard Feynman in the 1950s

Limitations

Traditional friction-based braking must be used in conjunction with mechanical regenerative braking for the
following reasons:

The regenerative braking effect drops off at lower speeds; therefore the friction brake is still required in order
to bring the vehicle to a complete halt. Physical locking of the rotor is also required to prevent vehicles from
rolling down hills.

The friction brake is a necessary back-up in the event of failure of the regenerative brake.

Most road vehicles with regenerative braking only have power on some wheels (as in a two-wheel drive car)
and regenerative braking power only applies to such wheels because they are the only wheels linked to the
drive motor, so in order to provide controlled braking under difficult conditions (such as in wet roads) friction
based braking is necessary on the other wheels.

Effective regenerative braking can only occur if the battery or capacitors are not fully charged. For this reason,
it is normal to also incorporate dynamic braking to absorb the excess energy.
Engines and fuel sources
Fossil fuels
Free-piston engines could be used to generate electricity as efficiently as, and less expensively
than, fuel cells.
Gasoline
Gasoline engines are used in most hybrid electric designs and will likely remain dominant for the
foreseeable future. While petroleum-derived gasoline is the primary fuel, it is possible to mix in
varying levels of ethanol created from renewable energy sources. Like most
modern ICE powered vehicles, HEVs can typically use up to about 15%bioethanol.
Manufacturers may move to flexible fuel engines, which would increase allowable ratios, but no
plans are in place at present.
Diesel
Diesel-electric HEVs use a diesel engine for power generation. Diesels have advantages when
delivering constant power for long periods of time, suffering less wear while operating at higher
efficiency .The diesel engine's high torque, combined with hybrid technology, may offer
substantially improved mileage. Most diesel vehicles can use 100% pure biofuels (biodiesel), so
they can use but do not need petroleum at all for fuel (although mixes of biofuel and petroleum
are more common). If diesel-electric HEVs were in use, this benefit would likely also apply
Hydrogen
Hydrogen can be used in cars in two ways: a source of combustible heat, or a source of electrons
for an electric motor. The burning of hydrogen is not being developed in practical terms; it is the
hydrogen fuel-cell electric vehicle (HFEV) which is garnering all the attention. Hydrogen fuel
cells create electricity fed into an electric motor to drives the wheels. Hydrogen is not burned,
but it is consumed. This means molecular hydrogen, H2, is combined with oxygen to form water.
2H2 (4e) + O2 --> 2H2O (4e). The molecular hydrogen and oxygen's mutual affinity drives the
fuel cell to separate the electrons from the hydrogen, to use them to power the electric motor, and
to return them to the ionized water molecules that were formed when the electron-depleted
hydrogen combined with the oxygen in the fuel cell. Recalling that a hydrogen atom is nothing
more than a proton and an electron; in essence, the motor is driven by the proton's atomic
attraction to the oxygen nucleus, and the electron's attraction to the ionized water molecule.
An HFEV is an all-electric car featuring an open-source battery in the form of a hydrogen tank
and the atmosphere. HFEVs may also comprise closed-cell batteries for the purpose of power
storage from regenerative braking, but this does not change the source of the motivation. It
implies the HFEV is an electric car with two types of batteries. Since HFEVs are purely electric,
and do not contain any type of heat engine, they are not hybrids.
Hybrid vehicles might use an internal combustion engine running on biofuels, such as a flexible-
fuel engine running on ethanol or engines running on biodiesel.

Electrical machine
In split path vehicles there are two electrical machines, one of which functions as a motor
primarily, and the other functions as a generator primarily. One of the primary requirements of
these machines is that they are very efficient, as the electrical portion of the energy must be
converted from the engine to the generator, through two inverters, through the motor again and
then to the wheels.
Most of the electric machines used in hybrid vehicles are brushless DC motors (BLDC).
Specifically, they are of a type called an interior permanent magnet (IPM) machine (or motor).
These machines are wound similarly to the induction motors found in a typical home, but (for
high efficiency) use very strong rare earth magnets in the rotor. These magnets
contain neodymium, iron and boron, and are therefore called Neodymium magnets.
The price of Neodymium went through a price bubble due to Chinese export restriction in 2010
11, rising from $50/kg at the start of 2010 to $500/kg by the summer of 2011. This resulted in
'demand destruction' as many producers quickly turned to substituting induction motors in their
cars to defend their production line. This was in spite of such motors inferior 'power to weight'
ratio attributes significantly impacting all but the most powerful (energy guzzling) motor sizes,
e.g. those used in the Tesla. As of April 2014 there are other non-Chinese producers of
Neodymium and its price/kg is not much more than it was in 2010. Cutting edge U.K. motors
that are now being produced are using Neodymium Permanent Magnet technology. As security
of supply returns, it is certain that there will accordingly be a return to superior motor designs
that NdFeB Permanent Magnets enable.

Fuel consumption
Current HEVs reduce petroleum consumption under certain circumstances, compared to
otherwise similar conventional vehicles, primarily by using three mechanisms:[215]

Reducing wasted energy during idle/low output, generally by turning the ICE off

Recapturing waste energy (i.e. regenerative braking)

Reducing the size and power of the ICE, and hence inefficiencies from under-utilization, by
using the added power from the electric motor to compensate for the loss in peak power output
from the smaller ICE.
Any combination of these three primary hybrid advantages may be used in different vehicles to
realize different fuel usage, power, emissions, weight and cost profiles. The ICE in an HEV can
be smaller, lighter, and more efficient than the one in a conventional vehicle, because the
combustion engine can be sized for slightly above average power demand rather
than peak power demand. The drive system in a vehicle is required to operate over a range of
speed and power, but an ICE's highest efficiency is in a narrow range of operation, making
conventional vehicles inefficient. On the contrary, in most HEV designs, the ICE operates closer
to its range of highest efficiency more frequently. The power curve of electric motors is better
suited to variable speeds and can provide substantially greater torque at low speeds compared
with internal-combustion engines. The greater fuel economy of HEVs has implication for
reduced petroleum consumption and vehicle air pollution emissions worldwide
Many hybrids use the Atkinson cycle, which gives greater efficiency, but less power for the size
of engine.
Noise
Reduced noise emissions resulting from substantial use of the electric motor at idling and low
speeds, leading to roadway noise reduction, in comparison to conventional gasoline or diesel
powered engine vehicles, resulting in beneficial noise health effects (although road noise from
tires and wind, the loudest noises at highway speeds from the interior of most vehicles, are not
affected by the hybrid design alone). Reduced noise may not be beneficial for all road users, as
blind people or the visually impaired consider the noise of combustion engines a helpful aid
while crossing streets and feel quiet hybrids could pose an unexpected hazard.[218] Tests have
shown that vehicles operating in electric mode can be particularly hard to hear below 20 mph
(32 km/h).
A 2009 study conducted by the NHTSA found that crashes involving pedestrian and bicyclist
have higher incidence rates for hybrids than internal combustion engine vehicles in certain
vehicle maneuvers. These accidents commonly occurred on in zones with low speed limits,
during daytime and in clear weather.[221]
A proposed rule was published for comment by the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA) in January, 2013. It would require hybrids and electric vehicles
traveling at less than 18.6 miles per hour (30 km/h) to emit warning sounds that pedestrians must
be able to hear over background noises. The rules are scheduled to go into effect in September
2014. In April 2014 the European Parliament approved legislation that requires the mandatory
use of Acoustic Vehicle Alerting Systems (AVAS) for all new electric and hybrid electric
vehicles, and car manufacturers have to comply within 5 years.
Pollution
Battery toxicity is a concern, although today's hybrids use NiMH batteries, not the
environmentally problematic rechargeable nickel cadmium. "Nickel metal hydride batteries are
benign. Toyota puts a phone number on each battery, and they pay a $200 "bounty" for each
battery to help ensure that it will be properly recycled.