Classical transport systems (use fossil fuel) even though from the exponential development of technologies point of view the main issue represents the global voluntary pollution. Albeit the depollution systems of these vehicles are continuously improving, another issue is rising, and that is the depletion of fossil fuel in about 30-50 years. Thus, the electrical transport system (electrical vehicle) represents a suitable solution for the future transportation. The researches in this field aim two main objectives: the designing of new energy stocking sources (clean energy sources) and the development of the existing ones; the development of optimal electric propulsion systems from the power consumption with respect to energy as a limited resource. In general, an electrical transport system is an electrical vehicle whose torque is transmitted to the wheels through an electrical motor that uses energy only from batteries, or through an internal combustion engine that may use as a primary source the hydrogen, gas or fuel cells. The electrical drive technology is used for vehicles like bikes and motor scooters and ending with elevators, golf vehicles, passenger vehicles, buses, trolley buses, and commercial vehicles. This technology is also used in maritime ports or airports. The electrical vehicles may be classified in four main categories: rechargeable battery vehicles, rechargeable battery hybrid vehicles, hybrid vehicles and fuel cell vehicles. On a worldwide level, the researches are focused on high efficiency electrical transport systems with high operating safety and obviously without nox emissions. In fact, the majority of people travel for example by bus, or watch how theirs luggage are transported towards the airplane, without realising that they are already the consumers of the electrical transport systems. Thus, we present some of electrical transport systems applications: - commercial transportation - taxi: The electrical drives is very useful for vehicles with repeated stops and goo's, because it assures the recovering of the braking energy, that would have been lost as heat; typical applications for today urban commercial transportation include urban goods transportation, taxi and military vehicles; - public transportation: buses, trolleybuses, high speed trains for example, in megacities like New York, Seoul, Tokio, where the offer of the electrical bus companies is raising continuously, taking care of the environment, and also, electrical buses are less noisy and the braking system's lifetime is practically doubled; - electrical vehicles: Only recently electrical hybrid vehicles are available for end users, becoming very popular despite their high prices; the main majority of vehicle manufacturing companies aim to increase the number of hybrid vehicles in the near future. Even though, the economic analysis forecast, for example that the American hybrid vehicles market will weight only 3% until year 2011, and only because of the high prices. Albeit the researches on electrical vehicles for the end users markets stay almost exclusively in the big vehicle manufacturing companies preoccupations; - stocking, goods travelling and person transportation on limited areas: Electrical vehicles, like electropilers, wares transporters or person transporters are wide-spread inside industrial companies, tourism resorts, university campus. For example the replacement of a piler with engine with an electropiler is equivalent to driving out about 170 common cars; - wares transportations and person transport within airports or maritime ports: The electrical transportation technologies for airports include: luggage movement between the terminal and airplane, electrical luggage lorries, person transportation vehicles. Keeping with the previous classification, one can distinguish some of characteristic features for every type of electrical system with having in view to the purposed research thematic within the current project.

Hybrid vehicles with rechargeable battery:

Like other hybrids, electrical vehicles with rechargeable battery are propulsed using an electrical motor and an internal combustion engine. These transportation systems have a great number of batteries that can be recharged from an external source. Also, they can operate for distances about 20 - 60 km if the internal combustion engine is stopped. The current stage of this type of vehicles is the prototype stage being available in the next years.
Advantages:
reduced fuel consumption and nox emissions; braking energy recovering; zero nox emissions; very low battery recharging costs in comparison with fuel reloading;
Disadvantages:
- the cost and the complexity of the two propulsion systems; high initial cost; changing and recharging of the batteries; increased mass.
Researches:
- optimising the electrical system on power consumption and size; decreasing the number of sensors required for the electrical motor's control

Hybrid vehicles:

The hybrid vehicle is powered by both the electrical motor and the internal combustion engine. The hybrid is designed in such way that it captures the braking or descending energy to recharge its batteries. The captured energy is used to power the electrical motor, and so it is not necessary to charge the batteries from a power station (external power source). There are two types of hybrid vehicles. The first is the so-called "parallel" hybrid vehicle that works with the electrical motor or with the internal combustion engine only, never both in the same time. The second one is the "series" hybrid vehicle that it's mainly powered by the internal combustion engine. The electrical motor assists only when it's needed, for example when the vehicles starts, stops or accelerates. The market of hybrid vehicles is continuously increasing and so anybody can find a large number of different models available. An eloquent example is the use of hybrid buses that operate in big cities like New York or Seoul.
Advantages:
- the decreasing of fuel consumption and nox emissions; the decreasing of fuel cost; the recovering of braking energy; the use of the existing fuel charge infrastructure.
Disadvantages:
- the complexity of the two propulsion systems; high initial cost.
Researches:
- optimising the electrical system on power consumption and size; decreasing the number of sensors required for the electrical motor's control.

Fuel cell vehicles:

Fuel cell combines the hydrogen and the oxygen to obtain electrical energy used to power the electrical motor that moves the vehicle. In exterior only water is sent out. On roads one can see an important number fuel cell vehicles such as buses, trucks and military vehicles.
Advantages:
- no nox emissions (CO2 or other polluants); increased efficiency in comparison with internal combustion engine; increased safety because no fuel is used; energetic potential for possible consumers; braking energy recovery.
Disadvantages:
- low endurance; high costs. Researches:
- the decreasing of fuel cells costs, the increasing of the endurance and the optimisation of the energy consumption.

Rechargeable battery vehicles:

Rechargeable battery vehicles use the batteries only for powering the propulsion electric motor. The batteries do not produce nox emissions. They can be charged from an external charging system or with the recovered braking energy. This type of vehicles is spread all over the world and it is used in many applications: medium speed vehicles for wares transportation and storing, medical vehicles, vehicles used in airports, maritime ports, industrial applications vehicles, constructions, person transportation vehicles for tourism resorts, academic camps, companies.
Advanages:
- zero nox emissions (CO2 or other polluants); energetically safety by replacing the imported oil with local generated electrical energy; battery recharging over the night (when it is not used) by connecting it to a standard voltage source 110V/220V~; low operating cost; braking energy recovery.
Disadvantages:
- low endurance; a large number of batteries and so an increased total mass.
Researches:
- the improving of the batteries manufacturing process (high energy densities, increased lifetime) and the electrical power consumption optimisation to increase the endurance (that is, the number of kilometres between two recharges from an external device).

Conclusions:

Taking into account that common transportation vehicles (with internal combustion engines) are the main voluntary chemical pollution factors of the planet with noxes like CO, Nox, CH, carbon particles, Greenhouse gases(like CO2), and phonic pollution, the electrical transportation systems represent an important alternative for person and wares transportation. Albeit, for an increased efficiency and operating safety, optimal electrical transportation systems have to be developed in order to obtain a mass reduction and less power consumption. The safety refers to the use of a number of sensors for position, speed and torque also. The malfunction of these devices leads to a reduced operating safety and endurance of the whole drive system. In this sense, the researches on electrical drive systems are focused on sensorless drive systems. In Europe in 1998 has been founded an important research corporation (The European Sensorless Drives Consortium) directed by Prof. Peter Vas from the Aberdeen University, United Kingdom. Another imposed restriction on worldwide level is the diminish of classical resources, that is fossil fuel (oil, gas, coal) along with the exponential increase of energy demand. This is reflecting very clear in the exaggerated increase of the fossil fuel price. As a result, all the important participants at world economy are struggling to find new solutions. The most important power centres are: USA, Europe, South Korea and Japan. Especially in the last ten years the invested funds have become huge. Only the USA Government for example has invested over 2 billion dollars in the last three years. In Europe, Asia and USA, the vehicle manufactures have an enhanced research politics regarding battery electrical vehicles, hybird vehicles or fuel cell vehicles. An important number of connected industries is implied (for example battery manufacturers, electronic parts, electrical motors), universities and research institutes. The electrical energy suppliers are also interested on this matter because the electrical vehicle has potential on theirs markets. It also unanimously accepted that electrical vehicles with rechargeable battery (so called "pure electrical vehicles") have a great potential for the "niche market" such as: urban wares transportation, buses, vehicles dedicated to airports, postal services, materials storing and transportation etc.

Diagram of Project execution:

Last update: April 06, 2007 .