Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Flex-Fuel, Hybrid, Volvo
Frankfurt Preview: Volvo ReCharge - The Swedes go series hybrid
Click the photo for a high-res gallery
While Toyota is clearly not enamored with the concept of series hybrids (at least publicly) plenty of other companies are jumping on the idea. The latest to join the party is Volvo with a new concept that they will unveil next week in Frankfurt. The ReCharge is a plug-in series hybrid based on the compact C30 hatchback. The all-wheel drive propulsion will be provided courtesy of wheel motors at all four corners.
Juice for the motors will come from a lithium polymer battery pack mounted in the trunk with sufficient capacity for 62 miles of electric driving. Once the battery state of charge dips to thirty percent, a 1.6L four cylinder flex-fuel engine bolted to a generator starts up to re-charge the battery. The ReCharge can also be plugged in to replenish the battery energy. The wheel motors and generator were developed with PML Flightlink of England (creators of the 640hp electric Mini).
The engine-generator has enough power to provide juice to a house in the event of power-failure. Thanks to the range of battery and the fact that the engine can operate at its most efficient speed, the ReCharge can do a 93 mile drive on 2.8L of gas for 124mpg (US). A full charge (presumably on a 220V circuit as used in Europe) comes in three hours while one hour at the plug will provide enough power for a thirty mile jaunt. There's a video after the jump in addition to the press release.
Gallery: 2007 Volvo ReCharge concept
[Source: Volvo]
PRESS RELEASE:
GROUNDBREAKING PLUG-IN HYBRID – THE VOLVO RECHARGE CONCEPT – UNVEILED AT FRANKFURT MOTOR SHOW
* Plug-in hybrid with battery-only range of over 60 miles
* 66 per cent lower CO2 emissions than best hybrids available today
* 1.6 Flexifuel engine provides backup and recharge power
Volvo is unveiling an innovative plug-in hybrid at the Frankfurt Motor Show. The ReCharge Concept is a specially designed Volvo C30 with individual electric wheel motors and batteries that can be charged via a regular electrical outlet. When fully charged the Volvo ReCharge Concept can be driven approximately 62 miles on battery power alone before the car's four-cylinder 1.6 Flexifuel engine1 is needed to power the car and recharge the battery. The concept car also retains the Volvo C30's lively and sporty drive thanks to an acceleration figure of 0-62mph in 9 seconds and a top speed of 100mph.
"This is a groundbreaking innovation for sustainable transportation. This plug-in hybrid car, when used as intended, should have about 66 percent lower emissions of carbon dioxide compared with the best hybrid cars available on the market today. Emissions may be even lower if most of the electricity comes from CO2-friendly sources such as biogas, hydropower and nuclear power. A person driving less than 60 miles per day will rarely need to visit a filling station. Also, thanks to the excellent electrical range from a fuel consumption angle, the Volvo ReCharge Concept is exceptionally kind to the car owner's wallet," commented Magnus Jonsson, Senior Vice President Research & Development at Volvo Cars.
Operating costs are estimated to be about 80 percent lower compared to a similar petrol-powered car when using battery power alone and even drivers who cover more than the battery-only range will benefit from the ReCharge Concept. For a 150km (93 mile) drive starting with a full charge, the car will require less than 2.8 litres of fuel, giving the car an effective fuel economy of 1.9 l/100km (124mpg).
The only extra cost will be the electricity used during charging. The Volvo ReCharge Concept can be charged at any regular electric plug socket at convenient locations such as at home or work and a full recharge will take three hours. However, even a quick one hour charge provides enough power to cover just over 30 miles.
During a journey the combustion engine starts up automatically when 70 percent of the battery power has been used up. However, the driver also has the option of controlling the four-cylinder Flexifuel engine manually via a button in the control panel. This allows the driver to start the engine earlier in order to maximise battery charge, for instance when out on a motorway in order to save battery capacity for driving through the next town.
An electric motor at each wheel
The Volvo ReCharge Concept combines a number of the latest technological innovations into a so-called "series hybrid" where there is no mechanical connection between the engine and the wheels.
* The battery pack integrated into the boot uses lithium-polymer battery technology. The batteries are intended to have a useful life beyond that of the car itself.
* Four electric motors, one at each wheel, provide independent traction power.
* Four-cylinder 1.6-litre Flexifuel engine drives an advanced generator that efficiently powers the wheel motors when the battery is depleted.
"There is a considerable difference between the Volvo plug-in hybrid and today's hybrids. Today's hybrids use the battery only for short periods to assist the combustion engine. Volvo's solution is designed for most people to run on electric power all the time, while providing the extra security that comes with having a combustion engine as a secondary source of electrical power," says Ichiro Sugioka, project manager for the Volvo ReCharge Concept.
Electric car with a combustion engine as backup
The Volvo ReCharge Concept is a battery electric car with an efficient generator, an Auxiliary Power Unit (APU), that steps in when battery charge becomes insufficient for adequate driving performance. The APU is designed to distribute electrical power to the individual motors at each wheel. Since the combustion engine only powers the APU, it can operate in an optimal fashion, both for regulated emissions and CO2. The APU is powerful enough to supply an entire house with electricity. For example it could, in principle, with minor modifications, give the car owner an electricity generator right at his front door in the event of a power failure.
Specially developed electric motors
The central electrical components in the Volvo ReCharge Concept – the generator for the APU and the wheel motors – were developed together with British electromagnetic specialists PML Flightlink.
With an individual electric motor at each wheel, weight distribution as well as mechanical efficiency and traction are maximised and the friction in mechanical gears is eliminated. Since the car does not have the transmission found in ordinary cars, there is no need for a gear lever.
To help maximise the environmental benefits, the Volvo ReCharge Concept has high-efficiency tyres developed by Michelin which are specially designed to accommodate the wheel motors. The car also has All-Wheel Drive in the truest sense of the term as power to each wheel is controlled individually.
The energy that is generated during braking is transmitted to the battery pack. When the system is ultimately developed, traditional wheel brakes will be completely replaced by electrical brakes with minimal energy wasted through friction. To ensure reliable operation of the drivetrain and braking system, driver inputs are fed into a quadruple-redundant electronic control system.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
jcwinnie 11:38AM (9/06/2007)
Is this like the Maximum Bob CADM Hype Mobile, a.k.a. Chevy Volt, or can it actually be driven?
PML Flightlink supposedly put a Mini on the test track, so one would assume that it can be done.
BTW, the Mini prototype had advanced lithium batteries AND super capacitors. And, cost a little less than the Gross National Product of some small countries to build.
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Paul 11:47AM (9/06/2007)
It's a Volt-vo!!
Obviously Volvo's answer to the Volt (Ford HySeries with ICE vs. fuel-cell??). I'm excited to see more series hybrid prototypes since it is the only way electric cars are going to pick up here in the states in the next ten years. Let's just hope Volvo doesn't require you to pay weekly for batteries.
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voitoi 11:50AM (9/06/2007)
I hope they will make that concept real. It's he best way I think - in-wheel motors, battery and an an efficient generator.
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Brian 12:06PM (9/06/2007)
This looks like a great system. I like the redundancies in the braking but what braking is available in the event of complete electrical loss. It seams to me there will also be the need for a mechanical brake of some sort. I've read other articles about the wheel motors and have yet to see this addressed. I really enjoy your articles, keep up the good work!
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gordon 12:12PM (9/06/2007)
this is the kind of hybrid that I would like. cute sexy and fuel efficient. i'm dying for a hybrid with leather.
g.
http://www.cheapgreencar.com
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J.Sneep 1:08PM (9/06/2007)
This is the car we all waiting for, the car of future has arrived.
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Sebastian 1:08PM (9/06/2007)
This sounds impressive. Do you know how much it will cost? Do we have more details on the battery?
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VPC 1:24PM (9/06/2007)
Nice design.
Think of generating the electricity from solar or wind installed on the home. This would be very energy efficient and ecological.
Wonder about the battery design. Also if the ICE would have problems being off for extended periods of time. Current ICEs like to be used regularly. Maybe the on board computer would keep track of this and run the ICE once and awhile to keep it lubricated.
As an owner of a 04 Prius (50+mpg, 70+mph, AC on, 4 people, trunk full of camping gear) glad to see a US affiliated car company working on this giant step toward energy efficiency.
I’ll get in line.
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KC 1:24PM (9/06/2007)
This may be more favorable in it's segment then the proposed segment for the Chevy Volt.
This looks like it would slot in somewhere in the premium luxury market around the price of a BMW M3 optimistically.
I think just as there is a market for really expensive small high performance sedans like the BMW M3, there is a market for extremely expensive small super efficient high tech sedans/sport hatches.
There is no place for a series hybrid in the general market right now as GMs proposed battery lease model and Toyota's general dislike of series hybrids demonstrates.
There is just no way to get a $20000 battery in an affordable, well built car.
Sure, you could put that $20000 battery in some piece of scrap aluminum from china that only costs $10000 and end up with a $30000 series hybrid, but good luck selling any with a Chinese quality car and no brand reputation.
For the major players to have success the series hybrid needs to slot in into an uber premium niche market made up of wealthy environmental posers.
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Huggs From The Heartland 4:27PM (9/06/2007)
Hey there KC,
Those "wealthy environmental posers" are just the people that our sustainability movement needs to buy these expensive, first-generation products. The more of them that do, we mean reduced production costs due to mass-manufacturing efficiencies. Being a jaded and bitter "real" environmentalist is no way to to win over converts to the greater cause of sustainability and lifestyle greening.
Also, "real" environmentalists wouldn't even use computers or the internet because of those items use of power, toxic materials and generation of toxic e-waste.
;)
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Evelyn J. Dymkowski 5:38PM (9/06/2007)
I WANT ONE, HOW CAN I GET IT?
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Snark 6:13PM (9/06/2007)
"This would be very energy efficient and ecological."
Can I just say how silly it is to refer to anything as 'ecological'? Ecology is a scientific field that studies how ecosystems work. It's not a stand-in for "environmentally sound" or something.
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Domenick 7:52PM (9/06/2007)
2015 is a long way away. But, if I start saving now, maybe I'll have enough to afford the down payment by then.
I love this concept though. I'm a big fan of the PML Flightlink in-wheel motors and think this is the future. Hopefully, the near future.
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T2 11:47PM (9/06/2007)
"Once the battery state of charge dips to thirty percent, a 1.6L four cylinder flex-fuel engine bolted to a generator starts up to re-charge the battery."
They're going to do what ? I'm not saying I don't believe you, but let's see if I've got this right. They are going to drag this engine around for forty miles or so and then fire it up to recharge. In this way they will ensure that almost every piece of electricity generated has to go into the battery before the traction motors are allowed to use it. And in so doing will absolutely guarantee that battery losses will be unnecessarily incurred by churning energy into and out of it.
Are they nuts ?
T2
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Chris M 3:08AM (8/09/2008)
People keep making that mistake about plug-in series hybrids. After the batteries are drained to about 35%, the generator starts up to supply power, and most of that power goes directly to the motor driving the wheels. The battery is only recharging when there is surplus power, and is only partially recharged, the generator shuts off if the charge level rises high enough (about 50%)
That erroneous notion got started when someone said "there is no direct connection between the IC engine and the wheels". He meant "no direct mechanical connection", but others got the mistaken notion that there was no direct electrical connection, either.
A special high performance version is possible, with an extra powerful electric motor drawing power from both batteries and generator at the same time for extra-fast acceleration.
Conspriacy theory 5:19AM (9/07/2007)
They might sell by 2015. Whooopee. Might as well be "In the Year 2525"
VAPOWARE... But cool vaporware.
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Snark 8:06AM (9/07/2007)
"Are they nuts"
Yes. Somehow an entire team of automotive and electrical engineers forgot that incredibly basic concept entirely and omitted it from all their planning and discussion. But thank God you, some random naysayer on a car blog, caught their error!
Seriously, what do you think they are, a bunch of totally retarded chowderheads?
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raerae 3:05PM (9/07/2007)
Does anyone know who's LiPo's they're using?
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T2 3:11PM (9/07/2007)
Snark, you may be under the delusion that design teams are democracies, they are not. Common sense being not that common, stupid things get done.
I am not a naysayer nor a johnny-come-lately either. I have been interested in series hybrids since 1976 and wrote a treatise of my ideas in 1985. When the Prius was announced I picked up everything I could find to determine how much a superior system it was to my version of a series hybrid. My version doesn't use an expensive boutique energy source at all. Still, it replaces the mechanical stepped transmission like the Prius does, except it doesn't have the restraints on engine power delivery that the Prius has because of its PSD unit.
I am just blowing the whistle to the forum on this ridiculous 1.6L engine scheme here. I would no more utilise a four cylinder engine for battery charging than I would use my oscilloscope when a neon screwdriver would suffice. And now I've brought it up perhaps others will agree with me. It seems to be major overkill, one that will contribute to inflating further the hybrid premium you and I will have to pay should we wish to purchase this model. This design is what you might expect from a bunch of university students with a poor attitude not seasoned professionals.
A four cylinder engine is a device which is intended to provide a smooth torque over an extended speed range. These qualities are certainly not requisites for charging batteries and they cost, big time.
There are much cheaper, lighter and simpler (read more reliable) options out there.
A battery system will support only so many recharge cycles anyway so why use them up for no reason.
An undersized charger that ran continuously or not at all - function to be decided by the driver - would seem to be a better strategy for battery longevity. Two hundred thousand Prius can't be wrong !
Has every one read about the Fiat Panda aria (Subompact) that has just been announced with its parallel twin cylinder turbocharged 900cc 105Hp engine ? The article has only garnered a few posts on this board. Now Snark, that is what I would call smart engineering.
T2
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Andrew Kelsey 7:27PM (9/10/2007)
KC... I read here in the UK that the ReCharge is slated to sell for £18,000 or around $36,000. Not too bad if its battery really lasts 15 years as they say. With gasoline at around $9 a gallon in Europe you could easily save $3,000 a year. The car could pay for itself! T2... I'm pretty sure the generator drives the motors directly, so not all of the power will go into and out of the battery. It'll just be trickle recharged ready for the next time out.
It's a step in the right direction towards the full EVs that are inevitable once the battery tech catches up.
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