Optimisation of the energy efficiency of a hybrid vehicle powertrain

To minimise fuel consumption, automakers are committed to developing new architectures for more efficient engine powertrain systems. The substitution of conventional thermal engine by a hybrid powertrain provides an additional degree of freedom for the energy flow management between an electrical branch and a thermal branch to consume less fuel. Parallel architecture offers the best compromise between design simplicity and energy efficiency, with respect to other architectures as serial and mixed architectures. In this context, this work deals with energy modelling of a parallel powertrain architecture and fuel optimisation independently of the vehicle path. For this purpose, two energy models that express the instantaneous overall efficiency of the vehicle powertrain are designed, and a fuel optimisation algorithm is developed. Numerical simulation shows the significant energy saving offered by the hybrid vehicle provided with the proposed fuel management law, compared to the internal combustion engine of a conventional vehicle. Copyright © 2021 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.