Systems engineering approach for eco-comparison among power-train configurations of hybrid bus

This paper aims to realize an eco-comparison among power-train configurations of hybrid busses in terms of performance, fuel consumption and CO2 emission. The present study has been carried out in the context of the international research program PLACIS (PLAteforme Collaborative d'Ingénierie Systèmes). In this work, experimental data of a pure electric power-train, evaluated in a dedicated laboratory of Istituto Motori — the National Research Council of Italy, have been used to carry out a pre-design phase of the modelling procedure. From that point on, in order to optimize the powertrain performance, a series hybrid vehicles configuration and a parallel one have been modeled and simulated on DYMOLA-MODELICA environment. The vehicle that has been taken into account, as reference for the comparison, is a "RENAULT-Master" minibus. Power-trains have been modeled with a backward-forward configuration in order to have a physical approach to the problem, respecting the required performances. The study has been developed with System Engineering approach that aims to manage the complexity of systems with a multidisciplinary proposal.