Topological analysis of powertrains for refuse-collecting vehicles based on real routes–Part I: Hybrid hydraulic powertrain

In this two-part paper, a topological analysis of powertrains for refuse-collecting vehicles (RCVs) based on the simulation of different architectures (internal combustion engine, hybrid electric, and hybrid hydraulic) on real routes is proposed. In this first part, a characterization of a standard route is performed, analyzing the average power consumption and the most frequent working points of an internal combustion engine (ICE) in real routes. This information is used to define alternative powertrain architectures. A hybrid hydraulic powertrain architecture is proposed and modelled. The proposed powertrain model is executed using two different control algorithms, with and without predictive strategies, with data obtained from real routes. A calculation engine (an algorithm which runs the vehicle models on real routes), is presented and used for simulations. This calculation engine has been specifically designed to analyze if the different alternative powertrain delivers the same performance of the original ICE. Finally, the overall performance of the different architectures and control strategies are summarized into a fuel and energy consumption table, which will be used in the second part of this paper to compare with the different architectures based on hybrid electric powertrain. The overall performance of the different architectures indicates that the use of a hybrid hydraulic powertrain with simple control laws can reduce the fuel consumption up to a 14 %.     

Optimal scheduling of the flexray static segment based on two-dimensional bin-packing algorithm

FlexRay is a reliable and hard real-time in-vehicle communication protocol that is strongly promoted by car manufacturers as the de facto standard in the automotive domain. The protocol offers both a time-triggered and an eventtriggered architecture. This paper focuses on the optimal scheduling of the time-triggered component of FlexRay known as the static (ST) segment using a two-dimensional bin-packing technique. To maximize the bandwidth utilization in the ST segment, a fast heuristic as well as an efficient integer linear programming approach are proposed. Our methods directly schedule signals into slots including frame packing, according to signal-based data scheduling and the slot/ cycle multiplexing mechanisms presented by the latest version of the FlexRay protocol. The benefits of our proposed methods are demonstrated by extensive experiments on synthetic and an automotive X-by-wire system case study. An additional test case is examined to emphasize the superior performance of the proposed approach relative to that of existing optimal scheduling approaches.     

Damage Accumulation in Rail Steel under Rolling with Slippage and Its Analysis

Experimental research results of surface damage accumulation in rail steel under rolling with slippage are presented. Hertz contact for two rollers made of rail and wheel steels was realized in the test. The influence of loading regime upon wear of rail is considered. The estimation of characteristics of surface fracture resistance for rail steel is made. The method to predict the life of rail steel under given conditions of regular loading is proposed.     

Management of coastal eutrophication: Integration of field data, ecosystem-scale simulations and screening models

A hybrid approach for eutrophication assessment in estuarine and coastal ecosystems is presented. The ASSETS screening model (http://www.eutro.org) classifies eutrophication status into five classes: High (better), Good, Moderate, Poor and Bad (worse). This model was applied to a dataset from a shallow coastal barrier island system in southwest Europe (Ria Formosa), with a resulting score of Good. A detailed dynamic model was developed for this ecosystem, and the outputs were used to drive the screening model. Four scenarios were run on the research model: pristine, standard (simulates present loading), half and double the current nutrient loading. The Ria Formosa has a short water residence time and eutrophication symptoms are not apparent in the water column. However, benthic symptoms are expressed as excessive macroalgal growth and strong dissolved oxygen fluctuations in the tide pools. The standard simulation results showed an ASSETS grade identical to the field data application. The application of the screening model to the other scenario outputs showed the responsiveness of ASSETS to changes in pressure, state and response, scoring a grade of High under pristine conditions, Good for half the standard scenario and Moderate for double the present loadings. The use of this hybrid approach allows managers to test the outcome of measures against a set of well-defined metrics for the evaluation of state. It additionally provides a way of testing and improving the pressure component of ASSETS. Sensitivity analysis revealed that sub-sampling the output of the research model at a monthly scale, typical for the acquisition of field data, may significantly affect the outcome of the screening model, by overlooking extreme events such as occasional night-time anoxia in tide pools.     

Analysis of the capabilities of a two-stage turbocharging system to fulfil the US2007 anti-pollution directive for heavy duty diesel engines

This article presents a two-stage turbocharged heavy-duty diesel (HDD) engine designed to fulfil the US2007 anti-pollution directive. This directive imposes very restrictive limits on the NOx and particle emissions of HDD engines. In this work, the possibility of combining particle traps in the exhaust line to reduce soot emissions with very high EGR rates to reduce NOx emissions is considered. This new generation engine implements two-stage turbocharging in order to improve the bsfc when the engine is working on steady conditions as well as to optimize the engine transient response. After carrying out the tests, the results were analyzed and the engine settings were adjusted to maximise its behaviour and minimise pollutant emissions. NOx and soot emission peaks were also analyzed at engine transient conditions in order to keep them under certain levels, and thus maintain the overall pollutant emissions to a level that is as low as possible. In summary, a double-stage turbocharging configuration can greatly improve engine driveability (between 23% and 36% depending on engine speed), while reducing NOx emissions during transient evolution without increasing opacity peaks beyond the stated limits.     

Improving the predictiveness of the quasi-d combustion model for spark ignition engines with flexible intake systems

Fast and predictive simulation tools are prerequisites for pursuing simulation based engine control development. A particularly attractive tradeoff between speed and fidelity is achieved with a co-simulation approach that marries a commercial gas dynamic code WAVE™ with an in-house quasi-dimensional combustion model. Gas dynamics are critical for predicting the effect of wave action in intake and exhaust systems, while the quasi-D turbulent flame entrainment model provides sensitivity to variations of composition and turbulence in the cylinder. This paper proposes a calibration procedure for such a tool that maximizes its range of validity and therefore achieves a fully predictive combustion model for the analysis of a high degree of freedom (HDOF) engines. Inclusion of a charge motion control device in the intake runner presented a particular challenge, since anything altering the flow upstream of the intake valve remains “invisible” to the zero-D turbulence model applied to the cylinder control volume. The solution is based on the use of turbulence multiplier and scheduling of its value. Consequently, proposed calibration procedure considers two scalar variables (dissipation constant C _β and turbulence multiplier C _M ), and the refinements of flame front area maps to capture details of the spark-plug design, i.e. the actual distance between the spark and the surface of the cylinder head. The procedure is demonstrated using an SI engine system with dual-independent cam phasing and charge motion control valves (CMCV) in the intake runner. A limited number of iterations led to convergence, thanks to a small number of adjustable constants. After calibrating constants at the reference operating point, the predictions are validated for a range of engine speeds, loads and residual fractions.     

Spatial variability of the barotropic M2 constituent tidal current over the Rías Baixas Galician shelf (NW Spain)

Using current meters and systematically repeated vessel mounted ADCP data legs, we describe the role of the semidiurnal and diurnal constituents in the tidal currents and investigate the mesoscale variability of the M₂ tidal currents field along three cross-shelf legs over the Galician shelf. We found that the estimated values of the semi-major axes of the main semidiurnal tidal constituents are closely related to those obtained in previous research and that the tidal currents are predominantly semidiurnal. Amplitudes of the M₂ and S₂ semi-major axes constituents are comparable, and important fortnightly variability should thus be expected in the amplitude of the semidiurnal tidal currents. Vertical profiles of the semi-major axes of the main tidal constituents reveal that, in the absence of stratification, and far from the bottom frictional effects, the tidal currents are mostly barotropic. Over the slope, the tidal ellipses tilt from a north–south orientation toward the northeast–southwest direction and, as we go further into the shelf, their amplitude is increased, a feature that is reasonably explained by the transition from the dynamics of a Poincaré wave offshore to the dynamics of a northward alongshore propagating Kelvin wave over the shelf. The Ría de Vigo exerts a notable influence over the tidal currents, acting as an extension of the shelf and introducing a meridional variation in the orientation of the ellipses from the alongshore direction in the southern straight coast toward the northeast–southwest direction at the latitude of the Rías. Finally, the spatial fitting methods we tried have proved to be successful in VMADCP data detiding in this region.