Low cost technical solution to soaring fuel prices?

Those seeking a low cost technical solution to soaring fuel prices could do worse than take a gander at the advice of Controlled Power Technologies (CPT).

Its micro-hybrid technologies are designed to support the transition from current powertrains to the still distant mass market adoption of affordable mild hybrid vehicles.

According to the UK-based automotive technology company, the prospect of oil racing towards £75 a barrel can only push more customers to less powerful cars.

The challenge facing the industry is reducing engine power without compromising driveability and performance.

Nick Pascoe, chief executive of CPT, believes his company can help: "Legislators have recognised the political urgency for reducing carbon emissions in response to increasing consumer concern.

"However, vehicle manufacturers will only sell reduced CO2 vehicles if the price is affordable to the mass market consumer.

"That only happens when the technologies required to achieve the reduction are sufficiently mature to ensure industry financial risk is minimised.

"Since the technical risk drives the cost, the only solution is taking smaller, incremental steps - hence the pressing need for low cost micro-hybrid solutions.

"Engine downsizing has been shown to be one of the most cost effective routes to vehicle CO2 reduction and European carmakers are already moving rapidly towards a 30 per cent reduction in the displacement of their mid-sized engines.

Global downsizing

"[A] global downsizing trend will only succeed, however, if the technology is cost effective and the driving experience still satisfies the mass market consumer," Mr Pascoe continued.

"For small engines to be effective in urban environments, they need near instant full torque availability for the driver demanding strong acceleration. Such responsiveness is essential to avoid fuel being unnecessarily wasted because the driver must continually select low ratio gears in order to keep up with traffic flow.

"To achieve this, smaller engines would typically require sophisticated boosting systems. However, there are simpler and more cost-effective solutions now available that can prevent such systems becoming more complex and expensive than the engine itself.

"Our production-ready variable torque enhancement system (VTES) provides full boost within 350 milliseconds and significantly improves low speed torque response for naturally-aspirated or turbocharged gasoline and diesel engines.

"VTES can be implemented on current vehicles, using existing 12-volt electrical architecture, and is therefore more cost effective than any equivalent mild hybrid solution.

"When correctly matched to the engine, VTES can dramatically increase the air charge density over the critical first ten combustion cycles of a low speed transient operation, delivering real improvements in both torque and emissions performance, where it matters most."

Stop-start system

In addition to the electric supercharger, the CPT family of low carbon powertrain-related products includes a stop-start system now moving close to production readiness, with an exhaust energy recovery system in an advanced stage of development.

The stop-start system's switched reluctance motor provides the power density to re-start an engine within 400 milliseconds, the start time necessary for a driver to perceive a dependable 'instant' re-start.

"There is also a tremendous incentive to minimise or recover the energy rejected by the engine as heat," says Mr Pascoe.

"One of the main sources of waste heat is exhaust gas with approximately 30 per cent of the hydro-carbon fuel energy used by a vehicle lost down the exhaust pipe.

"Although some of the exhaust can be used to power a turbocharger at certain points in the operating cycle, and heat is required to operate a catalyst, there is still plenty of energy worth recovering."