"Pony Express" electrification of long haul trucks using tractor swapping

Roger Bedell Product DirectorFurrer+Frey OpbridAutomated High Power Charger StationsContact: rbedell@furrerfrey.ch +41 31 357 6180

Electrification of Long Haul Trucks using Tractor Swapping (Pony Express Model)

Motivation“A number of studies suggest that in the 2020 to 2030 time frame, heavy-duty vehicles are estimated to overtake passenger cars as the largest global contributor to fuel consumption and GHG emissions in the transport sector”

Motivation

Figure 3: New heavy-duty vehicle sales and fleet-wide fuel consumption in the U.S.

Per Mile (US) costs ofTractor-trailer

Proposed Solutions

Overhead Catenary – Big Infrastructure

In-Road Inductive Charging – Big Infrastructure

Battery Swapping – difficult to swap thevery large batteries needed, expensive stationsUltra-fast Charging during

rest times: heavier LTO batteries, very high Charge rates

Another Possibility: Tractor Swapping(Pony Express Model)

Tractor Swapping – Step 1

Tractor-Trailer arrives with lowBattery charge

Fully charged tractorwaiting

Tractor Swapping – Step 2

Driver Unhooks TractorFrom Trailer

Driver switchesTractors

Tractor Swapping – Step 3

Truck departs withFull battery

Tractor charges

Enabling Technology 1:Jost KKS Automated Coupling System

Enabling Technology 2:Furrer+Frey Opbrid Trůkbaar

Advantages• No large infrastructure projects needed

• No ultra fast charging needed – high energy batteriescan be used for longer runs between charges

• Simple, inexpensive and proven equipment

• Fast and safe. Swap in just a few minutes for a fully charged battery.

• Available today

Disadvantages• Without good scheduling, tractors can be left idletoo long, raising capital costs

• Tractors and trailers need to both have the KKSSystem for fast swaps, though manual swapping is possible

• Delays in one area can affect the entire system – similar to airport delays

• New business model, favors large shippers.

Possible Scheduling• Truck departure headway timed to allow enough timeto charge, perhaps 60 minutes (1C charging)

• Time tractor swapping should coincide with mandatory driver breaks to reduce the down time associated with leaving and entering the motorway

• Best for large wholly owned fleets or a “TractorSharing” business model

Example: Rotterdam to Zurich

Schedule (assuming 90km/h)• 08:00 Depart Rotterdam• Drive 2 hr 15 min (200km)• 10:15 Mandatory 15 minute break, tractor swap• Drive 2 hr 15 min (200km)• 12:45 Mandatory 30 minute break, tractor swap• Drive 2 hr 15 min (200km)• 15:30 Mandatory 15 minute break, tractor swap• Drive 2 hr 15 min (200km)• 18:00 End of driver shift, max 9 hours reached,• Destination reached.

• 4 swap/charging stations needed.

Battery Requirements per tractor

Range needed is about 200km + extra for wind, traffic, hills

Tractor-trailer fuel consumption is approx. the same asa 12m bus at ~37l/100km, or ~1kWh/km

Assuming 2kWh/km gives a battery of 400kWh

Using available NMC batteries with a pack level energy density of 110Wh/kg = 3600kg

Battery Requirements per tractor

Litarion NMC cycle life 9000@1C/1C, 3000@3C/3C

Makes economic sense to extend cycle life by charging at 1C (400kW) instead of 3C

Double the energy density of LTO, ½ the weight. SimilarCost/kWh/cycle

Duty cycle 2.25 hr driving/1 hour charging at 400kW (1C)

Equipment Requirements

Ratio of 3.25/2.25 tractors per load = 1.44 tractors per loadBut with some built in time for delays, 1.75 tractorsPer load is likely more reasonable.

Driving time of tractors depends on operation hours.Assuming 18 hours per day of operation, tractors willCharge 18/4 times per day = 4.5 times per day.

4.5 * 300 days = 1350 times per year, or 6 year lifetime.

Economics

Fuel cost is the largest portion of per mile trucking costs

Average fuel consumption is about 37 l/100km in bothUS and EU (similar to 12 meter buses)

Fuel costs of electricity are approx. 20% of diesel.

Economics

If a load is moved 800km per day, savings by electrification can approach

0.39 l/km * 75% * 800km * 1.20 €/l

280 €/Day * 300 days = 84.240 €/Year

Economics

Additional costs:

Batteries – battery cost is currently around 0.06 €/kWh/cycle(0.12 €/km) (Litarion NMC-9k cycles)

Extra Tractors – more tractors are needed, though eachtractor will last longer since it runs fewer km/year

Chargers, additional parking, and electrical infrastructure

Possible “Fatal Flaws”

• What about traffic jams? (accidents, construction etc)• Will the drivers want to do it? (No idea)• What if all the chargers are occupied? or, what if there are no charged tractors ready? (Logistics software)• Will this work with driverless trucks? (Yes!)• Swapping time is considered driving time, so this may eat into driver’s allowable time. (True)• Too difficult to implement (Incentive likely depends on direct and indirect financial benefits)

If electrifying is doable, we must do it now.Global warming is a real and present danger, and we need to stop burningfossil fuels.

Contact:Roger Bedell, Product Director Opbrid Charging Systems Furrer+Frey AG, Bern, CHrbedell@furrerfrey.ch+41 (0) 79 609 5120