Acoustics development of range extenders for electric vehicles

Abstract

The most common question associated with battery-powered electric vehicle is: “How far can I get with the vehicle?” This question describes to the point the subconscious fear of potential buyers of being stranded one day with their vehicle with an empty battery. With electric vehicles, people constantly have to make choices: “warm feet, cool head, or getting there?” This is due to the fact that the energy that must be provided for the vehicle’s climate control also comes from the battery and, as a result, limits the range, which is not great to begin with, even further. From today’s point of view, the best answer to this problem is a range extender with a combustion engine, which permits a range that is virtually independent from the battery. This is expected to have an impact on the end customers’ acceptance of electric vehicles. Battery-powered electric vehicles with their currently limited usage profile seem to be ideal for use in urban areas. This application range calls for a range extender engine that helps expand the use of urban vehicles. The range extender engine increases the range of the FEV Liiondrive for instance from 80 km with purely electric drive to a total range of 300 km with one full tank of fuel. The result is a special range of requirements on the engine with the following characteristics: : small : light-weight (~50 kg) : low-cost (~1000 €) : limited output range (20 kW to 35 kW), maximum performance is reached with purely electric operation : excellent NVH characteristics : can be offered as an option. Standard range extenders are suitable for battery-powered electric urban vehicles. However, in the larger classes of vehicles, full hybrids with more battery power (plug-in hybrids) are preferable. This class of vehicles can then also be used as urban vehicles with a purely electric drive that can be charged from the power grid, ❶. Open image in new window ❶ Hybrid drivetrains