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What Is A Hybrid Electric Vehicle?

Wednesday, February 22nd, 2006 by Bryce   Subscribe To My Feed

If you have been following the news of late than you have no doubt at least heard of hybrid electric vehicles. But what are they? Well I have come across a local article that does a good job giving a very basic breakdown of what hybrid electric vehicles are as well as the differences between the different types of hybrid electric vehicles such as mild and full hybrids.

Included in this list is the “plug-in” hybrid, which in the future is the ideal, as it would run for up to 100 km as a battery-electric vehicle. Of course, this hybrid is only truly less damaging to the environment if the electricity has come from a clean source of energy, otherwise it is no more beneficial than the mild hybrid.

What is a hybrid electric vehicle?

SAVING ENERGY WITH KNOWLEDGE

Basically, a hybrid electric vehicle combines an internal combustion engine and an electric motor powered by batteries, merging the best features of today’s combustion engine cars and electric vehicles. The combination allows the electric motor and batteries to help the conventional engine operate more efficiently, cutting down on fuel consumption. Meanwhile, the gasoline-fueled combustion engine overcomes the limited driving range of an electric vehicle. In the end, this hybridization gives you the ability to drive 750 kilometres or more using less fuel and never having to plug-in for recharging. To help you navigate the hybrid market, let’s take a closer look at what’s under the hood that sets hybrids apart. But remember, not all hybrids are created equal. In fact, there are degrees of hybridization such as “mild� and “full� and even different drive trains. If we approach hybrids by looking at the five technology steps that separate conventional vehicles from battery electric vehicles, we can better understand how a hybrid operates. To be a true hybrid, a vehicle needs the first three steps. The fourth and fifth create the potential for hybrids with superior energy and environmental performance.

FIVE STEPS TO HYBRIDIZATION
1. Idle-off capability: Like the switch that turns off the refrigerator light bulb when the door is closed, this feature allows a vehicle to turn off its gasoline engine when stopped, saving fuel. In a well-designed system, the engine will turn back on and be ready to go in less time than it takes for you to move your foot from the brake to the gas pedal.

2. Regenerative braking capacity: The energy associated with a car in motion is called kinetic energy. The faster a car moves, the more kinetic energy it has. To slow down a car, you have to get rid of that energy. In a conventional car, you use the friction of your brakes to stop, turning the kinetic energy into hot brakes and thereby throwing away the energy. “Regen,� or regenerative braking takes over some of the stopping duties from the friction brakes and instead uses the electric motor to help stop the car. Turning the electric motor into a generator and recovering some of the kinetic energy.

3. Power Assist and Engine downsizing (at this step you reach a “mild� hybrid): The most basic definition of a hybrid vehicle is one that uses two methods of providing power to the wheels. As a result, an electric motor that shares the load with a gasoline engine is the step that, on top of the first two, truly qualifies a vehicle as a hybrid.

4. Electric-only drive (at this step you reach a “full� hybrid): This technology step allows the vehicle to drive using only the electric motor and battery pack. With this step, we separate out “full� hybrids such as the Toyota Prius and Ford Escape. At low speeds and at launch, the electric motor and battery powers the car, and at high speeds the engine takes over.

5. Extended battery-electric range (at this step you become a “plug-in� hybrid):
Hybrids can boast better “low end torqueâ€? than comparable conventional vehicles. The final level of hybridization extends the electric motor’s capacity to drive the car by recharging the battery from a clean energy grid (i.e. “plug inâ€?). This would allow the hybrid to operate solely as a battery-electric vehicle for as much as 30 – 100 kilometres (20 – 60 miles), thus improving environmental performance if you use clean sources of electricity.

For more information please visit www.hybridcenter.org.