Sparkletts Water testing micro-turbine electric trucks
Clean advanced technologies for hybrid-electric heavy-duty vehicles and development of a universal electric vehicle rapid charger are getting a big boost from two new WestStart-CALSTART (Pasadena, CA) demonstration projects.
Following are brief descriptions of the projects and technologies:
1) ISE Research-ThunderVolt Inc., with headquarters in San Diego, and a team of three companies, Capstone Turbine Corp., Peterbilt, and Sparkletts Water Company (West Covina, CA), will demonstrate the first-ever use of a micro-turbine in a Class 8 hybrid truck application. The "Turbine-Driven Hybrid-Electric Truck (THT)" project will use, for the first time in any type of vehicle, the new Capstone 60 kW turbine. Although micro-turbines have been used in a handful of small transit bus uses, they have never been used in a heavy-duty truck.
The truck being used is a Class 8 line haul truck owned by Sparkletts Water Company. Sparkletts will use the THT to ferry bottled water from its bottling plant to regional distribution centers in the Los Angeles area. These trucks travel approximately 180 miles per day on local streets and freeways and approach the legal gross vehicle weight limit of 80,000 pounds when fully loaded.
The THT project has the potential to yield substantial air quality benefits based on the combined benefits of using the Capstone turbine, running on clean fuel -- propane -- and the efficiency of the hybrid-electric drive system.
Total emissions reductions offered by the THT are substantially greater than 1 ton per year for each vehicle converted. Based on an estimated 8 million miles of heavy-duty vehicle traffic in the Los Angeles area per day, NOx emissions in the region alone would be reduced by more than 130 tons per day if all heavy-duty vehicles utilized this technology.
ISE board chairman Mike Simon told Beverage Online that Sparkletts Water has been successfully using a short-range (30-60 miles) electric delivery truck for some time, and that similar vehicles are available for other interested beverage companies. The new hybrid electric truck to be tested by Sparklett is a longer-range vehicle—up to several hundred miles.
2) PowerDesigners, in conjunction with its development partner Southern California Edison, will develop a high-efficiency and low-cost universal multi-port rapid charger for off-road electric vehicles such as ground support equipment (GSE) at airports and forklift trucks.
The technology being developed also will directly benefit on-road applications. The project seeks to address some of the challenges facing rapid charging such as the providing of optimal charging to the batteries, the ability to charge different types of electric vehicles with varying power requirements, different battery chemistries and terminal voltages.
Citing the high cost of existing rapid chargers, the project is targeting cost reduction and the ability of this single universal charter to replace a multitude of dedicated slow charging units.
The technology of the universal multi-port rapid charger will be able to interface with the diversity of vehicle battery systems. When used, the universal multi-port rapid charger technology will automatically detect the vehicle battery voltage and type and apply the proper charging power, which will optimally charge the battery pack.
With multiple ports, more than one vehicle could be charged sequentially by the charger, improving the utilization of the charger. The universal multi-port charger also will lower the capital cost for infrastructure by reducing the number of unique "slow" chargers necessary to accommodate each battery technology and power level.
Finally, rapid charging will reduce charging times and increase work cycles for vehicles, creating additional cost savings for fleet operators.
Both projects, funded by the Defense Advanced Research Agency (DARPA), are designed to enhance the commercial viability of advanced transportation technologies.
The two projects being funded are the demonstration of the first-ever use of a micro-turbine in a Class 8 hybrid truck application; the other project is the development of a universal multi-port rapid charger for electric vehicles, particularly off-road vehicles such as electric ground support equipment (GSE) and forklift trucks used at airports and in metropolitan areas.
The projects have a total program value of $1.2 million and represent a partnership between WestStart-CALSTART, DARPA and seven companies.
"These projects keep pushing advanced vehicle technologies forward into real world applications," said Michael J. Gage, president and CEO of WestStart-CALSTART, the nation's leading advanced transportation consortium. "They will accelerate the use of advanced vehicles in the marketplace for cleaner, more efficient transportation."
WestStart-CALSTART is an advanced transportation technologies consortium that focuses on developing new, clean technologies and solutions in transportation. Working with private partners worldwide, WestStart-CALSTART provides technology development and demonstration, market analysis, and fleet implementation services.
Its expertise includes electric vehicles, natural gas vehicles, hybrid electric vehicles, intelligent transportation systems (ITS), mobility services and fuel cell technologies.
For more info: Susan Romeo, WestStart-CALSTART, Tel: 626-744-5600; Mike Simon, ISE Research, Tel: 858-637-5770 or Fax: 858-637-5776.
Edited by Judy Rice