Automotive Design
4 Until there is a viable alternative to the internal combustion engine, automotive manufacturers need to find ways to reduce fuel consumption and emissions to comply with legislation and reduce the vehicles’ ‘carbon footprint’. Paul Stevens reports on a selection of the latest technologies that can help to achieve these goals.
Incremental improvements deliver major reductions in vehicle emissions
E
urope is maintaining its squeeze on the automotive industry. On one hand manufacturers are facing more stringent legislation to cap the levels of carbon dioxide (CO2
produce, while drivers and vehicle operators are under pressure from the European Commission’s proposed Europe-wide carbon tax on road fuel. Automotive manufacturers and their suppliers
therefore need to develop and implement innovative technologies to reduce emissions and, by implication, fuel consumption. Interestingly, EC Regulation 443/2009, which proposes more stringent emissions performance standards for new passenger cars, suggests that the measure will play a key role in helping to stimulate innovation. Leaving aside what might be considered ‘long-
term’ measures such as hydrogen fuel cell cars and all-electric vehicles, the main areas for development are likely to include everything from vehicle weight reduction to improved engine efficiency, wider
Fig. 1. Schaeffler’s double-row angular contact ball
ncept-10% vehicle, which is based on a V8 Porsche Cayenne.
bearings account for a 1.1 per cent fuel saving in the CO2
) that vehicles
adoption of start/stop technologies, and more effective, lower-cost hybrid vehicles. There is also potential to use related technologies such as self- driving cars where more efficient speeds can be sustained on motorways, resulting in a reduction in fuel consumption for each convoy of vehicles. Boosting engine efficiency is an important focus
for automotive manufacturers as they strive to cut fuel consumption and reduce emissions. One innovation with much promise is a fully variable hydraulic valve control system that the developers hope will cut CO2
emissions by 25 per cent.
UniAir, which is a joint development between the Schaeffler Group and Fiat Powertrain, will make its debut on Fiat’s new Alfa MiTo 1.4 MultiAir. The UniAir technology provides improvements in start-up, partial load and acceleration behaviour of the vehicle. During the engine warm-up phase, for example, hydrocarbon (HC) emissions can be 40 per cent lower, and nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions are down by as much as 60 per cent. In addition, UniAir
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