Evaluation of energy requirements for all-electric range of plug-in hybrid electric two-wheeler Shaik Amjad a, * , R. Rudramoorthy b , S. Neelakrishnan a , K. Sri Raja Varman a , T.V. Arjunan a a Department of Automobile Engineering, PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore 641 004, India b PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore 641 004, India article info Article history: Received 4 June 2010 Received in revised form 30 December 2010 Accepted 30 December 2010 Available online 3 February 2011 Keywords: Plug-in hybrid electric two-wheeler Vehicle model MATLAB simulation All-electric range Energy requirements Driving cycle abstract Recently plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) are emerging as one of the promising alternative to improve the sustainability of transportation energy and air quality especially in urban areas. The all- electric range in PHEV design plays a significant role in sizing of battery pack and cost. This paper presents the evaluation of battery energy and power requirements for a plug-in hybrid electric two- wheeler for different all-electric ranges. An analytical vehicle model and MATLAB simulation analysis has been discussed. The MATLAB simulation results estimate the impact of driving cycle and all-electric range on energy capacity, additional mass and initial cost of lead-acid, nickel-metal hydride and lithium- ion batteries. This paper also focuses on influence of cycle life on annual cost of battery pack and rec- ommended suitable battery pack for implementing in plug-in hybrid electric two-wheelers. Ó 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction Two-wheelers are a popular mode of transportation in many urban areas of Asia, such as India, because of limited space, short daily trip distances, population density and easy operation and maintenance [1]. They are very convenient and cater to a large group of people including commuters, students and small busi- nessmen. Two-wheeler population in India has grown very rapidly in the last decade. Statistics show that the number of two- wheelers has multiplied by a factor of three times during this period and account for nearly two-third of total vehicle pop- ulation [2]. The dramatic expansion of traffic volume has resulted in rapid increase in energy consumption has become a very pressing problem. In China, if electric bicycles replaced all the 90 million motorcycles, it could produce an annual energy saving of 20 million tonnes of fuel [3]. The expected high fuel/energy consumption and emission contribution of two-wheelers in urban areas needs more attention in order to improve the sustainability of transportation energy and urban air quality in the near future. In addition to combustion, life cycle emissions from gasoline include crude oil extraction and transportation, refining, and fuel distribution. In the last decade, the emphasis has shifted between electric vehicles, fuel cell vehicles and bio-fuels. More recently, plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) have gained a great deal of momentum. This is because the PHEVs offer significant greenhouse gas benefit and greatly reduce the petroleum use [4]. PHEV technology provides the potential to displace a significant portion of trans- portation petroleum consumption by using electricity for portions of trips. A PHEV is a hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) with the ability to be plugged into a regular home electrical socket. A PHEV allows for all-electric operation for limited distances, with the option of having the operation and range of a hybrid/conventional vehicle on longer trips with the help of internal combustion engine. A key benefit of plug-in hybrid technology is that the vehicle is no longer dependent on a single fuel source. One of the unique advantages of plug-in hybrid vehicles is their capability to integrate the trans- portation and electric power generation sectors in order to improve the efficiency, fuel economy, and reliability of both systems [5]. Implementation of plug-in hybrid concept to two-wheelers offers greater flexibility and better utilization of resources. The most significant technical barrier in deploying commer- cially viable plug-in hybrid electric two-wheeler is the energy storage system and its requirements. In addition, the fuel/energy * Corresponding author. Tel.: þ91 95859 15931; fax: þ91 42225 73833. E-mail address: amjad72@gmail.com (S. Amjad). Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Energy journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/energy 0360-5442/$ e see front matter Ó 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.energy.2010.12.069 Energy 36 (2011) 1623e1629