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As part of the Midterm Evaluation of the 2017-2025 Light-duty Vehicle Greenhouse Gas Standards, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) developed simulation models for studying the effectiveness of stop-start technology for reducing CO2 emissions from light-duty vehicles. Stop-start technology is widespread in Europe due to high fuel prices and due to stringent EU CO2 emissions standards beginning in 2012. Stop-start has recently appeared as a standard equipment option on high-volume vehicles like the Chevrolet Malibu, Ford Fusion, Chrysler 200, Jeep Cherokee, and Ram 1500 truck. EPA has included stop-start technology in its assessment of CO2-reducing technologies available for compliance with the standards. Simulation and modeling of this technology requires a suitable model of the battery. The introduction of stop-start has stimulated development of 12-volt battery systems capable of providing the enhanced performance and cycle life durability that it requires.

While equivalent circuit modeling is an effective way to model the performance of automotive Li-ion batteries, in some applications it is more convenient to refer to round-trip energy efficiency. Energy efficiency of either cells or full packs is seldom documented by manufacturers in enough detail to provide an accurate impression of this metric over a range of operating conditions. The energy efficiency of a full battery pack may also be subject to more variables than would be represented by extrapolating results obtained from a single cell, and can be more demanding to measure in an accurate and consistent manner. Roundtrip energy efficiency of a 22.8-kWh A123 Li-ion (Lithium Iron Phosphate, LiFePO4) battery pack was measured by applying a fixed quantity of charge and discharge current between 0.2C and 2C rates and at SOCs between 10% and 90% at an average temperature of 23°C.

A Battery Test Facility (BTF) has been constructed at United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to test various automotive battery packs for HEV, PHEV, and EV vehicles. Battery pack tests were performed in the BTF using a battery cycler, testing controllers, battery pack cooler, and a temperature controlled chamber. For e-machine testing and HEV power pack component testing, a variety of different battery packs are needed to power these devices to simulate in-vehicle conditions. For in-house e-machine testing and development, it is cost prohibitive to purchase a variety of battery packs, and also very time-consuming to interpret the battery management systems, CAN signals, and other interfaces for different vehicle manufacturers.

The increasing numbers of hybrid electric and full electric vehicle models currently in the market or in the pipeline of automotive OEMs require creative testing mechanisms to drive down development costs and optimize the efficiency of these vehicles. In this paper, such a testing mechanism that has been successfully implemented at the US Environmental Protection Agency National Vehicle and Fuel Emissions Laboratory (EPA NVFEL) is described. In this testing scheme, the units-under-test consist of a battery pack and its associated battery management system (BMS). The remaining subsystems, components, and environment of the vehicle are virtual and modeled in high fidelity.

The Advanced Light-Duty Powertrain and Hybrid Analysis tool was created by EPA to evaluate the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions of Light-Duty (LD) vehicles. It is a physics-based, forward-looking, full vehicle computer simulator capable of analyzing various vehicle types combined with different powertrain technologies. The software tool is a freely-distributed, MATLAB/Simulink-based desktop application. Version 1.0 of the ALPHA tool was applicable only to conventional, non-hybrid vehicles and was used to evaluate off-cycle technologies such as air-conditioning, electrical load reduction technology and road load reduction technologies for the 2017-2025 LD GHG rule. The next version of the ALPHA tool will extend its modeling capabilities to include power-split and P2 parallel hybrid electric vehicles and their battery pack energy storage systems. Future versions of ALPHA will incorporate plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) and electric vehicle (EV) architectures.

The Advanced Light-Duty Powertrain and Hybrid Analysis (ALPHA) tool was created by EPA to evaluate the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions of Light-Duty (LD) vehicles. It is a physics-based, forward-looking, full vehicle computer simulator capable of analyzing various vehicle types combined with different powertrain technologies. The software tool is a freely-distributed, MATLAB/Simulink-based desktop application. Version 1.0 of the ALPHA tool was applicable only to conventional, non-hybrid vehicles and was used to evaluate off-cycle technology such as air-conditioning, electrical load reduction technology and road load reduction technologies for the 2017-2025 LD GHG and Fuel Economy rule. The next version of the ALPHA tool extends its modeling capabilities to include power-split and P2 parallel hybrid electric vehicles and their battery pack energy storage systems. Future versions of ALPHA will incorporate plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) and electric vehicle (EV) architectures.

After initial trials on Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) engine design and tests pursuing feedback control to avoid misfire and knocking over wide transient operation ranges, Engineers at the US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) National Vehicle Fuel and Emissions Laboratory identified the crucial engine state variable, MRPR (Maximum Rate of Pressure Rise) and successfully controlled a 1.9L HCCI engine in pure HCCI mode [1]. This engine was used to power a hybrid Ford F-150 truck which successfully ran FTP75 tests in 2004. In subsequent research, efforts have been focused on practical issues such as improving transient rate, system simplification for controllability and packaging, application of production grade in-cylinder pressure sensors, cold start, idling and calibration for ambient conditions as well as oxidation catalyst applications for better turbine efficiency and HC and CO emissions control.

Energy security and climate change challenges provide a strong impetus for investigating Electric Vehicle (EV) concepts. EVs link two major infrastructures, the transportation and the electric power grid. This provides a chance to bring other sources of energy into transportation, displace petroleum and, with the right mix of power generation sources, reduce CO₂ emissions. The main obstacles for introducing a large numbers of EVs are cost, battery weight, and vehicle range. Battery health is also a factor, both directly and indirectly, by introducing limits on depth of discharge. This paper considers a low-cost path for extending the range of a small urban EV by integrating a parallel hydraulic system for harvesting and reusing braking energy. The idea behind the concept is to avoid replacement of lead-acid or small Li-Ion batteries with a very expensive Li-Ion pack, and instead use a low-cost hydraulic system to achieve comparable range improvements.