A methodology to couple simulation and economics to analyze emerging power train architectures for Heavy-duty Commercial Vehicles

Current paper presents the methodology to couple the physics-based simulation of vehicle with power train architectures like IC engine, hybrid, Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) and Fuel Cell (FCEV) vehicle with economic analysis. The Techno economic analysis is performed for Heavy duty Commercial Vehicles (HCV) using in-house simulation tool as well as cost projections for emerging fuels substituting Diesel and key components. India specific drive cycle for optimized thermal efficiencies and ecosystem trends are used for on-highway application market. Accordingly, fuel economy, carbon signature and Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) is estimated for individual architecture over next two decades. The analysis enables industry and businesses to understand the most desirable & feasible solutions, prioritize the time wise investments and identify potential areas to collaborate with external partners like university and government agencies. The results for rigid truck use case are presented in terms of Tank-To-Wheel (TTW) CO2 (GHG) reduction and TCO trends with respect to baseline Diesel powertrain. With increasing level of Diesel substitution TTW CO2 reduces. This needs combination of alternative low caron fuels, advanced architectures, transmissions, axle ratio etc. for optimizing thermal efficiency and system level vehicle efficiencies. The sensitivity study for CO2 and TCO wrt Brake Thermal Efficiency (BTE) for key architectures is also performed