Future Transportation, Vol. 5, Pages 77: Potential Assessment of Electrified Heavy-Duty Trailers Based on the Methods Developed for EU Legislation (VECTO Trailer)
Future Transportation doi: 10.3390/futuretransp5030077
Authors:
Stefan Present
Martin Rexeis
Since 1 January 2024, newly produced heavy-duty trailers are subject to the assessment of their performance regarding CO2 and fuel consumption according to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/1362. The method is based on the already established approach for the CO2 and energy consumption evaluation of trucks and buses, i.e., applying a combination of component testing and vehicle simulation using the software VECTO (Vehicle Energy Consumption calculation TOol). For the evaluation of trailers, generic conventional towing vehicles in combination with the specific CO2 and fuel consumption-relevant properties of the trailer, such as mass, aerodynamics, rolling resistance etc., are simulated in the “VECTO Trailer” software. The corresponding results are used in the European HDV CO2 standards with which manufacturers must comply to avoid penalty payments (2030: −10% for semitrailers and −7.5% for trailers compared with the baseline year 2025). Methodology and legislation are currently being extended to also cover the effects of electrified trailers (trailers with an electrified axle and/or electrically supplied auxiliaries) on CO2, electrical energy consumption, and electric range extension (special use case in combination with a battery-electric towing vehicle). This publication gives an overview of the developed regulatory framework and methods to be implemented in a future extension of VECTO Trailer as well as a comparison of different e-trailer configurations and usage scenarios regarding their impact on CO2, energy consumption, and electric range by applying the developed methods in a preliminary potential analysis. Results from this analysis indicate that e-trailers that use small batteries (5–50 kWh) to power electric refrigeration units achieve a CO2 reduction of 5–10%, depending primarily on battery capacity. In contrast, e-trailers designed for propulsion support with larger batteries (50–500 kWh) and e-axle(s) (50–500 kW) demonstrate a reduction potential of up to 40%, largely determined by battery capacity and e-axle rating. Despite their reduction potential, market acceptance of e-trailers remains uncertain as the higher number of trailers compared with towing vehicles could lead to slow adoption, especially of the more expensive configurations.
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