Renault Trucks is testing a 16 tonne hybrid truck running on electricity with an autonomous extender in partnership with Norbert Dentressangle and ThyssenKrupp Materials France, a vehicle resulting from work carried out with IFP Energies Nouvelles and PVI.
The “hybrid series rechargeable” technology used by this vehicle makes it possible to combine considerable autonomy in all-electric mode with an overall operating range of several hundred kilometres in hybrid mode. The vehicle can therefore carry out assignments in “zero emission” zones (generally town centres) and in industrial zones on town outskirts in the same day.
In operational terms, this means that the experimental vehicle has a total operating range of over 400 km, 60 km of which can be in all-electric mode, i.e. emitting no noise, polluting emissions or CO2. It is fitted with electric traction by PVI, using a 103 kW/400 V asynchronous electric motor, Li-Ion batteries packing a total energy of 85 kwh and a Diesel DXi 5 engine combined with a 70 kW generator. This generator will make it possible to produce electricity for recharging the batteries while the vehicle is travelling, thereby ensuring its autonomy while it is on its round. Furthermore, every time it brakes or decelerates, the kinetic energy is recovered by the electric motor and stored in the batteries. These batteries can be recharged in four hours using a 380 V, 64 A three-phase supply.