UPS orders up hydraulic hybrids from Eaton
While UPS is one of the companies that will test a hydraulic hybrid vehicle (HHV) from Hybra-Drive sometime next year, it has already done testing with a similar type truck from Eaton. The initial 18-month trial saw upwards of 50 percent less fuel burned and was positive enough for the delivery giant to order up seven of the HHVs. UPS calculates they see could a 30 percent reduction in CO2 emissions under actual working conditions. The first two trucks will be delivered in early 2009 for the Minneapolis area and will be monitored by Eaton. This addition brings the UPS "Green Fleet" of low-emission vehicles up to 2,129, by their count.
No price was given but we feel it's safe to assume they weren't cheap. UPS did state that if they were manufactured in high volume, the extra expense could be recouped in a three-year period from fuel and maintenance savings. This HHV is said to save fuel by using the hydraulic equivalent of regenerative braking, operating the engine more efficiently and stopping the engine altogether when it is slowing or stopped. When it is running, the high-efficiency diesel powers a pump instead of a transmission and incorporates storage tanks that hold pressurized hydraulic fluid. To see a nice visual representation of what's involved, hit the jump for the official schematic as well as a short bonus clip of a hydraulic hybrid in UPS colors under way.
[Source: UPS]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
GoodCheer 9:27AM (10/29/2008)
"50 percent less fuel burned and a 30 percent reduction in CO2 emissions"
Can someone explain to me how this is possible? If you burn 50% less fuel, shouldn't you produce EXACTLY 50% less CO2?
If the hybrid turns 100% of the carbon in the fuel into CO2, then the pre-hybrid, 'burning' 2 x the fuel, converted 43% more into CO2, so more than a quarter of the carbon input was NOT converted into CO2.
The only possible explanation I can think of is that without the hybrid vast quantities of unburned fuel, VOCs and CO were ejected through the exhaust pipe. But I would think that even the most lax emissions standards would reject a combustion cycle that turned more than 25% of the fuel into controlled pollutants.
Any help?
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Arnold Schneider 9:55AM (10/29/2008)
o.k., the original press release says:
"... the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said the prototype vehicle had achieved a 45-to-50 percent improvement in fuel economy compared to conventional diesel delivery trucks. UPS believes similar fuel economy improvements and a 30 percent reduction in CO2 are achievable in daily, real-world use."
So, it's actually 30 percent that UPS thinks that is possible and the 50 percent are from the first test and the press-release is a little bit unclear worded about this difference in results.
CO2-Emissions equal 100% fuel-consumption. Only exception: If you add other energy along the chain, like precharging the pressure reservior with power from the electric grid. But that would be unlikely to explain a 30 versus 50 difference.
Domenick Yoney 11:26PM (10/29/2008)
I shouldn't have linked the two figures together. I changed the text to reflect what was actually stated by UPS.
Gordio 11:58AM (10/29/2008)
It kinda makes sense because diesels are most inefficient when starting from stopping. Taht's why lots of smoke comes out. Because the hydraulic thing is MOST efficient at stop-->go, if you think about it, you can see why mileage improve faster than emissions.
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svh 4:07PM (10/29/2008)
Neh, ABG misstates the source by saying that fuel consumption was down 50%. What the source says is that fuel economy (i.e., distance driven per unit fuel used) is up 45-50%. That means fuel consumption (i.e., fuel used per distance driven) is down 30-33%. And that's where the 30% comes from. Do the math.
Gordio, smoke has nothing to do with CO2.
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John Rowell 10:36PM (10/29/2008)
This technology is great, and I'm happy to see UPS adopting and promoting it. But the big question that begs to be asked is, if the hydraulic hybrids can realize up to a 50% reduction in fuel cost, then why is UPS only ordering so few of them? If UPS converted their entire fleet right now, wouldn't they stand to save millions of dollars in fuel over the life of the vehicles?
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Chris M 11:53PM (10/29/2008)
There is a bit of justified caution, UPS wants to test them out first to see how well they hold up in real world conditions. UPS wouldn't want to convert their entire fleet then find a major problem like rupturing high pressure parts.
Also, these hydraulic hybrids are in limited production now, it will be several years before production lines are built with enough production to redo the entire UPS fleet. Be patient.