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Energy Efficiency, Emissions, Tribological Challenges and Fluid Requirements of Electrified Passenger Car Vehicles

This version is not peer-reviewed.

Submitted:

24 May 2021

Posted:

26 May 2021

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A peer-reviewed article of this preprint also exists.

Abstract
The motivations for the move to electrified vehicles are discussed with reference to their improved energy efficiency, their potential for lower CO2 emissions (if the electricity system is decarbonized), their lower (or zero) NOx/particulate matter (PM) tailpipe emissions, and the lower overall costs for owners. Some of the assumptions made in life-cycle CO2 emissions calculations are discussed and the effect of these assumptions on the CO2 benefits of electric vehicles are made clear. A number of new tribological challenges have emerged, particularly for hybrid vehicles that have both a conventional internal combustion engine and a battery, such as the need to protect against the much greater number of stop-starts that the engine will have during its lifetime. In addition, new lubricants are required for electric vehicle transmissions systems. Although full battery electric vehicles (BEVs) will not require engine oils (as there is no engine) they will require a system to cool the batteries – alternative cooling systems are discussed, and where these are fluid based, the specific fluid requirements are outlined.
Keywords: 
Energy Efficiency; Emissions; Tribology; Lubrication; Battery Electric Vehicles; Hybrid Electric Vehicles; Life Cycle Analysis; Thermal Cooling Fluids
Subject: 
Engineering  -   Automotive Engineering
Copyright: This open access article is published under a Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 license, which permit the free download, distribution, and reuse, provided that the author and preprint are cited in any reuse.

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