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Durability is one of the most important goals in the current state-of the-art design of new vehicles. Usually the durability performance is validated by the vehicle manufacturers driving directly the prototypes in field or through endurance schedules on proving ground fatigue surfaces. The validation procedure driving directly in field is very expensive and time-consuming. The reliability and accuracy of validations in proving ground surfaces are many times unknown, mainly because such endurance schedules are not fitted to the market (driving conditions and type of roads) and historically are based on empirical procedures. This paper discusses how IDIADA has developed a methodology to design accelerated durability schedules which obtain less expensive and fast durability validation procedures, as well as being reliable and fitted to the market and durability targets.

Ethanol fuel is a sustainable energy resource that is intended to provide a more environmentally and economically friendly alternative to petroleum-based fuels, such as gasoline. Recent interest in ethanol has increased due to the fact that it can be combined with gasoline at different percentages: from low percentages with not specially modified gasoline vehicles up to 85% of ethanol, and even up to 100%, in flexible-fuel vehicles. There is much debate and a considerable amount of concern among automakers and consumers regarding the environmental friendliness of ethanol, mainly due to the lack of complete knowledge about the effects of its use on direct pollutants from exhaust vehicle emissions such as CO, CO₂, NOx, HCs and particulates and on the fuel consumption of the vehicle.

Recent interest in ethanol has increased due to the promotion of its use by the authorities and because it can be combined with gasoline at different percentages: low percentages with not specially modified gasoline vehicles and up to 85% of ethanol (even up to 100%), in flexifuel vehicles. The question has arisen of whether the increase in volatility for ethanol/gasoline blends and the presence of ethanol (small molecule compared with the majority of hydrocarbons in gasoline) in the fuel have a significant influence on evaporative emissions, also taking into account permeation through materials used in the fuel system. The long-term effect on emissions of the addition of ethanol also needs to be evaluated. This paper assesses the impact of adding ethanol to gasoline on the evaporative emissions of vehicles by differentiating the sources (complete car, canister and fuel tank) and by differentiating evaporation and permeation effects.

Current regulations on exhaust automotive emissions focus on certain pollutants to control vehicle emissions. Hydrocarbons, the main components of gasoline, are one of these regulated compounds; however, the regulation only refers to the sum of total hydrocarbons (THC) without taking into account the individual components. Vehicles also emit a large variety of chemical besides hydrocarbons that can become much more harmful, depending on their environmental toxicity and the amounts that are emitted to the atmosphere. In recent years, due to the emergence of alternative fuels such as bioethanol and biodiesel, the interest in these not so well characterized compounds has grown. For example, when ethanol is used in gasoline blends as a fuel for internal-combustion engine vehicles, the study of other compounds such as alcohols, aldehydes and ketones, in addition to hydrocarbons, acquires more importance.

In a near future, platooning could become one of the most accessible strategies to help reduce the consumption of fuel and the emissions of toxic gases in the atmosphere, while also adding safety to the users and generating a better traffic flow. Nowadays, the auto industry and the governments are facing enormous challenges to reduce the amount of pollution in the atmosphere, to decrease the dependency on fossil fuels to generate energy and to increase safety on the highways. Several approaches are made, such as bio-fuels, hybrid and electric vehicles, engine downsizing and new modes of transportation that are more versatile and environmentally friendly. The downside is that most of this efforts are costly and require time and expense to be put to work. Platooning is an alternative option to minimize the impact to the environment profiting from the aerodynamic effects that occur naturally around a moving vehicle.

South East Asia is one of the regions with highest traffic-related fatality rates worldwide −18.5 fatalities per 100.000 inhabitants-. In response to that, governments of ASEAN countries are currently introducing new regulations, which will help to improve the road safety standards in the region. This paper reviews new safety regulations in force of following ASEAN countries: Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines. General safety trends promote the approach to international standards as well as the adoption of UNECE regulations. In fact, the 1958 agreement was signed by Thailand and Malaysia in 2006. Besides, Malaysia has gradually adopted fifty-three UNECE regulations so far and is currently considering the inclusion of twenty-four more. After the success of other NCAP organizations, the ASEAN NCAP assessment program was established in 2011.

When approaching new mobility solutions such as car-sharing, it soon becomes apparent that it may be necessary to develop specific vehicles for this application. In this paper, Applus IDIADA explains its experience in the development of the iShare, an electric vehicle conceived as a demonstrator of our complete vehicle development capabilities following the principle of “development led by functionalities”, with the consideration that it would be used in open car-sharing fleets running according to the MIT's (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) “mobility-on-demand” concept.

Emissions and fuel consumption reduction for the year 2020 have led to the development of new powertrain solutions. The development of new electric concepts presents vehicle integration challenges, involving among others, NVH. Energy flow is controlled by inverters that transform the energy from DC to AC by working at frequencies of the order of kilohertz with a control strategy that can abruptly switch, and motors introduce high orders and electro-magnetic forces due to their topology, inducing phenomena that are not present in internal- combustion engine vehicles. In Particular, a common characteristic of permanent magnet motors is cogging torque, which is due to the attraction of the rotor poles and stator slots that induces a torque ripple causing comfort challenges at low speed and low torque conditions.

The NVH performance of electric vehicles is a key indicator of vehicle quality, being the structure-borne transmission predominating at low frequencies. Many issues are typically generated by high vibrations, transmitted through different paths, and then radiated acoustically into the cabin. A combined analysis, with both finite-element and multi-body models, enables to predict the interior vehicle noise and vibration earlier in the development phases, to reduce the development time and moreover to optimize components with an increased efficiency level. In the present work, a simulation of a Hyundai electric vehicle has been performed in IDIADA VPG with a full vehicle multibody (MBD) model, followed by vibration/acoustic simulations with a Finite elements model (FEM) in MSC. Nastran to analyze the comfort. Firstly, a full vehicle MBD model has been developed in MSC. ADAMS/Car including representative flexible bodies (generated from FEM part models).