Report

Teaser, summary, work performed and final results

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - ASSURED (fASt and Smart charging solutions for full size URban hEavy Duty applications)

Teaser

There is an increasing need for cleaner air within city limits by reducing vehicular emissions both from public and private transport. Electrification of vehicles is one solution that can address this need. The problem with electrifying the current heavy duty vehicles (HD) is...

Summary

There is an increasing need for cleaner air within city limits by reducing vehicular emissions both from public and private transport. Electrification of vehicles is one solution that can address this need. The problem with electrifying the current heavy duty vehicles (HD) is that every OEM and charging solution provider has a different type of device which is not compatible with one another. This is a considerable concern because it might prevent the cities to introduce 100% electric vehicle technology. Another issue with regard to electric vehicle technology is the long charging time required for recharge the batteries which again creates doubts for relevant stakeholders in implementing them in their respective cities.
ASSURED looks into how this can be solved and builds on the interoperability concept where different types of HD medium duty (MD) vehicles can be charged with different charging solutions, thereby making them operate in any kind of environment, alleviating stakeholder concerns. ASSURED also builds on solutions to reduce the charging of the batteries by introducing super-fast charging concept for the heavy duty vehicles, thereby addressing end user and/or stakeholder concerns.
This is very relevant for the society because it solves two problems with one solution viz. improvement in local air quality & reduction of noise. In addition, it increases the user acceptance towards introducing electric vehicle technology in the public domain.
Overall objectives of the ASSURED project:
- Assessment of the needs of the cities, operators and end users of the next generation of electrically chargeable HD, MD and light-duty (LD) vehicles for urban environment.
- Improvement in the TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) by making an assessment of the impact of fast charging profiles on battery lifetime.
- Carrying out the sizing, safety, grid reliability and energy- efficiency study of the electric drivetrain.
- Development of next generation high-power charging solutions (up to 600kW) for electrified HD and MD vehicles in terms of standardized interfaces and interoperability. Defining and developing a common set of standards and protocols for superfast charging systems and their integration with the local grid.
- Development of interoperable and scalable high-power charging solutions among different key European charging solution providers and bus/trucks OEMs.
- Development of a novel simulation platform where innovative energy and charging management strategies can be implemented which not only improves the TCO, operational cost and the impact on the grid but also provides a base to implement the solution to any city thereby helping in scaling up of fleet.
- Development of several use cases to boost confidence among relevant stakeholders and demonstration of the uses cases in cities in real life conditions.
- Evaluation the ASSURED outputs based on defined KPIs for cost, energy efficiency, impact on the grid, battery ageing, noise and environmental and health impact of the different use cases.
- To actively support development of business cases and the exploitation of the project results across Europe.
- To effectively transfer knowledge and network with relevant stakeholders and governmental authorities for exchange of experience with the User Group, cities, PTAs and PTOs

Work performed

Since the start, considerable progress has been achieved across different activities within the project.
In order to lay the groundwork for the technical tasks within the project, it was necessary to carry out a complete analysis on
(1) Specifications of city and Public Transport (PT) needs for uptake of electric vehicles in the public transport sector (2) Constraints on the electricity grid due to connection of high power chargers and vehicles to it and (3) Specification of operational constraints where the challenges involved in operating different kinds of HD vehicles.
After laying the groundwork, some key issues such as transfer of large magnitudes of power into the vehicle from the grid and its subsequent consequences, the effect on battery lifetime and ageing due to superfast charging and investigation on grid stability when a large number of electric vehicles (EVs) are plugged to the grid have been analysed in detail.
A thorough background study on the currently utilised and existing HD vehicle charging methods was carried out. The key points from the current methods were collated along with the new innovations proposed in ASSURED to formulate the ‘ASSURED 1.0’ protocol. This will serve as a standard or reference document for testing the interoperability of different heavy-duty vehicles with different charging solutions.
A complete facility upgrade and test tool development has also been carried out where different charging solutions and HD vehicles can be tested. It serves the purpose of practical testing of components and vehicles as well as provides valuable data for interoperability which could be used by different parties.
In addition, a simulation tool is also being developed. The simulation platform has been finalised and a preliminary generic model is available. The results arising from this generic tool can provide valuable data and a quick assessment on the different charging strategies and a host of other information. Moreover, all Use Cases were described in detail based on the city’s needs and requirements.
A number of demonstrations of the buses and chargers in real city driving conditions are also now in preparation phase.

Final results

- Inter-operable charging solutions between three pillars of public transport – buses, trucks and vans.
- Exploration of fast charging technology (with powers up to 600 kW) for HD vehicles
- Testing of different charging solution solutions with different vehicles, thereby proving the concept of inter-operability.
- Development of a common standard for charging heavy duty vehicles and the interaction between the electricity grid and vehicle.
The following results will be available at the end of the project
- Effects on battery ageing and lifetime due to fast charging
- Effects on electric grids due to installation of high power chargers (up to 600 kW).
- A common standard, laying out the guidelines for interoperable operation of HD vehicles with chargers.
- Test results from interoperability.
- Results from use cases and demonstrations of the vehicles in cities.
- A simulation tool to complement all the above, basically a virtual platform for anyone wanting to use the ASSURED solution.
The project is expected to make impacts on market, technology and society. A growing market potential for the HD vehicles will translate to an increase in the number of jobs. From a technology perspective, the impact is taking the HD electric vehicle technology to commercialisation. This is done by addressing the remaining few issues lingering with electric vehicle technology and proving solutions to solve them (all done within the project). On a societal level, a boost is made towards making living in cities healthier by providing clean zero emission transport. Heavy duty electric vehicle technology if commercialised just like conventional internal combustion engine technology will create impact on a global level too. There could be a scenario in the future where the electricity to charge these buses comes solely from renewables and this will help fight climate change and reduce dependence on oil.

Website & more info

More info: https://assured-project.eu/.