MOTOR VEHICLE ENGINEERING

(Power and Energy balance)

Course No.: Meng 4341
 Power and Energy balance
• Force acting on vehicle
• Force acting on the vehicle can be classified as
– The force which moves the vehicle
– The forces which offers resistance in its motion
• The traction force of the driving wheels arise as a
result of operation of the engine and this force
depend on the interaction between the driving
wheels and the road.
 Power and Energy balance
•The force of resistance includes
•The force of friction in the Drive line (Internal resistance)
•The force of resistance of the road (rolling resistance)
•The force of resistance of the air
•The gradient resistance
•The acceleration resistance
 Power and Energy balance
• Motion resistances
– The power balance of a vehicle is developed at the clutch, i.e the effective
(net) power of the engine equals the sum of all motion resistances:
– Pe = Ppt + PRo +Pai + Ps +Pa
• Where the subscripts indicate:
– e – effective
– pt – power train
– Ro – rolling
– ai – air resistance (drag)
– s – slope (gradient)

– The power losses of the entire power train Ppt are mainly
friction losses.
– These losses depend linearly on the power transmitted from
the engine to the driving wheels
– The efficiency was found from 0.88 to 0.95
– The more the number of elements in the power train system,
the less the efficiency
PRO  Pai  Ps  Pa
pt 
Pe
Power and energy balance (contd.)
• With this, the sum of the motion resistances can be
rewritten as:
V
 Pmotion  FRO  Fai  Fs  Fa 
3600pt
• With V being the velocity of the vehicle km/h, Pmotion in kW and F in N
 Transmission Efficiency
• Power is transmitted from the engine to the driving wheels by
various units in the transmission where some power is lost in
overcoming friction.
• Transmission losses are
– Friction force between the gear teeth in the gearbox and
the driving axle, in the bearings and glands and also
– overcoming friction of the gears against the oil & on its
splashing
– Where Pt- Power delivered to the driving wheels
Pt  Peengine
Pe- Effective  Pf power (free power)
Pf- the loss of friction power
 Transmission Efficiency

• The moment of friction Mf reduce to the driving

wheel of a motor vehicle is
 Pf 
M f 1000 
 w 

– Where ωw angular velocity of the driving wheels

• The values of Mf accounts two types of losses

– Hydraulic losses (Mh)
– Friction losses between the teeth of gears & in U-
Joints (Mm)
 Transmission Efficiency
• The hydraulic losses (Mh) are caused by
– Churning, splashing of oil in the Gear box & Axle casings
• The hydraulic losses depend on
– Angular velocity of parts
– Viscosity
– Quantity of oil in the casing
• In the absence of experimental data for the type 4X2
vehicle, Mh can be determined using the following empirical
formula
Where V- Speed of vehicle, m/s
M h 2  0.09V Ga r 10 3
Ga- Weight of the vehicle, N
r- Radius of driving wheel, m
 Transmission Efficiency

• Moment Mh versus automobile speed for different vehicles

 Transmission Efficiency
• The general nature of the dependences
of the total moment of friction Mf in the
transmission and its components Mh and
Mm on the transmitted torque is shown in
the following graph.
• The horizontal straight lines describe the
value of Mh and the inclined lines , the
value of Mf = Mh + Mm
• Mf‘, Mh‘, Mm‘ represented by the solid
lines correspond to some period of time.
• If the reduction in oil viscosity or speed
of rotation diminishes the hydraulic
losses to Mh’’, the total moment will
equal Mf ’’(dash-and-dotted lines)
Change in the moment Mf and its components
• If the losses in the engagement of gears
increase and the moment Mm rises to
Mm’’’( dash line), the total moment will
prove equal to Mf ’’’.
 Transmission Efficiency
• In conformity the following graph it may be written that :
– Mf=Mh+Mm
=Mh+ (Me itr tanα)
=Mh+ (Meitr(1-x))

– where α- Inclination angle

x= (1-tanα) = Coefficient of effect of the load whose value can be

determined from the empirical formula
x=(0.98k) (0.97l) (0.99m)
k,l & m are number of pairs of spur gears, bevel gears and U-Joints
 Transmission Efficiency
Tractive Power on the driving wheel ( Pt )
t 
The effctive Power of the engine ( Pe )
Pt  Pe  Pf   M eitr  M f 
    
Pe  Pe   M eitr 
 M eitr  M h  M eitr tan  
 
 M eitr 
 M i (1  tan  )  M h   M eitr x  M h 
 e tr   
 M eitr   M eitr 
 Mh 
 x   
 M eitr 
 Transmission Efficiency
• Example 1
– Determine the value of t for a car in direct drive (itr =
5.0, k=0) and first speed (itr =15, k=2) in the
transmission with the following parameters: Me =
100N.m ; Mh =20N.m; l=1 (single final drive); m=3.
 Transmission Efficiency
Solution
• In direct drive:
• x = (0.98k) (0.97l) (0.99m) = (0.980) (0.971) (0.993) = 0.94

 Mh 
• t  x    = 0.94 -20/(100 x5) = 0.90
 M eitr 

• In first drive:
• x = (0.982) (0.971) (0.993) = 0.90

 Mh 
• t  x    = 0.90 – 20/(100 x 15) = 0.89
 M eitr 
 Rolling resistance
• Rolling resistance power is defined by:
– Pr = Fr x v = m x g x cos α x f x v
– The magnitude of rolling resistance depends mainly on:
• The nature of the road surface
• The type of tire
• The weight of the vehicle
• The speed of the vehicle
– rolling resistance coefficient f is due to the deformation work of the tire structure
near its contact area and the micro slippage of the tire tread on the road when
the tire is rolling on it.
– It is lower on hard, smooth, dry surface than on a worn out road
– Tire construction has significant influence on its rolling resistance: cross-ply tires
have a higher rolling resistance coefficient than radial –ply tires all other
conditions being remain the same
– f increases with
• the degree of deformation of the tire; thus
– With increasing load
– Decreasing tire inflation pressure
– And decreasing tire size
• Increase with vehicle velocity
 Rolling resistance (contd.)
– f is determined by multiple laboratory tests and on the
road
– For many performance calculations it is sufficient to
consider f as linear function of speed: f = 0.01 (1 +
V/160)
– Since the rolling resistance can not be taken as
constant through out the speed range of the vehicle, it
is usual to add another coefficient b such that:
f = (a+bV) W cos α. This is a more widely accepted
expression.
– Mean values of a and b are 0.015 and 0.00016
respectively
 Rolling resistance (contd.)
• Relationship between rolling resistance coefficient for
radial tires on different road surface types
– Note: tire load, tire inflation and velocity are regular
 AIR RESISTANCE
• The air resistance is the force exerted by the air that opposes the motion of a vehicle passing through
it. Or
• The force which opposes the forward movement of an automobile is aerodynamic drag, in which air
rubs against the exterior vehicle surfaces and forms disturbances about the body, thereby retarding
forward movement.
• Aerodynamic drag increases with speed; thus if the speed of a vehicle is doubled, the corresponding
engine power must be increased by eight times.
 AIR RESISTANCE

• Air resistance is composed of

– Form drag (55-60 %)
– Interference drag (12-18 %)
– System drag (10-15 %)
– Surface drag (8-10 %)
– Lift drag (5-8%)
 AIR RESISTANCE
• Form drag (55-60%)
– Mainly depend on the shape (profile) of the vehicle

The form drag could be

reduced by:
•Streamlines body

•Reduce the frontal

area
 AIR RESISTANCE
• One of the objectives of aerodynamic research is to reduce the air
resistance by designing a shape that will, for identical performance,
require lower energy production.
• An aerodynamic or streamlined body allows faster running for the
same consumption of energy, or lower consumption for the same
speed.
• Research for the ideal shape is done on reduced-scale models of
the vehicle.
• The models are placed in a wind tunnel, an experimental installation
producing wind of a certain quality and fitted with the means for
measuring the various forces due to the action of the wind on the
model or the vehicle.
• Moreover, at a given cruising speed, the more streamlined vehicle
has more power left available for acceleration: this is a safety factor.
 AIR RESISTANCE
• The design of a motor car body must, however,
remain compatible with imperatives of production, of
overall measurements and of inside spaciousness.
• It is also a matter of style, for the coachwork must
be attractive to the public.
• This makes it impossible to apply the laws of
aerodynamics literally.
• The evolution of the motor car nevertheless tends
towards a gradual reduction in aerodynamic
resistance.
 AIR RESISTANCE
• The following figure illustrates the improvements
in aerodynamic drag coefficient achieved by
alterations to the shape of vehicles. Over the
years, the value of Cd has been reduced roughly
as follows:
• 1910 0.95 1960 0.40
• 1920 0.82 1970 0.36
• 1930 0.56 1980 0.30
• 1940 0.45 1990 0.22
• 1950 0.42 1993 0.20
 AIR RESISTANCE
• Interference drag (12-18 %)
– All the components projecting away from the
basic shape like
• Door handle,
• Rear view mirror
– Causes flow separation or vortices which
increase the drag
To reduce this drag no component should be
projected away from the basic body
 AIR RESISTANCE
• System drag (internal flow) (10-15 %)
– It is basically air flow inside the body & outside and
interaction
– Air flow through radiator affect this drag
– Side glass windows in open condition also affect this drag
• Surface drag (8-10 %)
– Fluid friction on over the metal panels
– All surface imperfection will increase
this drag
• fastening bolts and paint quality
 AIR RESISTANCE
• Lift Drag (5-8%)
– Lift is a vertical force resulting from the
pressure difference above and underneath a
car
– It decreases the weight of the car in effect
 AIR RESISTANCE

Fa=

 AV 2 
Fa= D cd  
 2g 
V 2
q- dynamic pressure q
2g
CD- dimensionless drag coefficient
Af- frontal area of the vehicle
Vr- vehicle speed relative to air
 AIR RESISTANCE
• The typical modern automobile achieves a drag
coefficient of between 0.30–0.35.
 AIR RESISTANCE
• To simplify the calculations, the elemental forces of air resistance distributed
over the entire surface of a motor vehicle are replaced by a concentrated force
of air resistance Fai
• The point of application of the force Fai is called the sail center of a motor
vehicle.
• It has been found experimentally that the force of air resistance (in N):
• Fai = ρ/2 x cw x A x (v + v0)2
• And the power of aerodynamic drag (air resistance) is defined as
– Pai = v x Fai = ρ/2 x cw x A x (v + v0)2 x v
• Where
– ρ - air density
– cw - drag coefficient, unit less
– A – maximum lateral body section area (for passenger cars A = 0.9 x track width x
body height can be assumed)
– Vo – head component of wind velocity ( for many general cases, calm air can be
assumed with Vo = 0
– cw – depends on the types and design of the car body
• The other version of the above formula is:
Fai = cw x A x (v + v0)2 ;
Where cw is drag coefficient in N*s2 /m4 formula
 AIR RESISTANCE
•Theoretical drag curves for four types of vehicle, all reduced for comparison
purposes to a front section of 2 m2.
•Since air resistance increases in proportion to the square of the speed, a truck
with Cd 1.0 requires 35 bhp at 100 km/h, whereas a coupé with Cd 0.2 requires
only 7 bhp
 AIR RESISTANCE
• During the air tunnel test of the motor vehicle,
the fewer disturbances which occur as air moves
past the vehicle, the lower its drag.
• Threads on the vehicle exterior as well as smoke
streams indicate the air flow, and enable test
engineers to see where disturbance exists and
where air flows are interrupted or redirected, and
therefore where reshaping of the body is
necessary in order to produce better
aerodynamics.
AIR RESISTANCE
 AIR RESISTANCE
• Drag coefficient of other vehicles
– Truck, vehicle combination 0.8…1.5
– Motorcycles 0.6…0.7
– Buses 0.6…0.7
– Streamlined buses 0.3…0.4
• Methods to minimize drag coefficient
– Integrated headlights
– Cover car underbody and wheels
– Integrated external mirror
– Smooth finish of the body etc.
AIR RESISTANCE
AIR RESISTANCE
 Slope (grade) resistance
• Driving a vehicle uphill creates the slope (gradient)
resistance power Ps
Ps = Fs x v = m x g x Sin α x v
• Slope resistance power and forces have to be
considered well for the determination of the required
engine power
• Instead of indicating the gradient angle α , for many
practical cases the gradient p= (tan α)*100% is used.
• For driving the vehicle downhill, the slope angle has to
be taken with negative sign giving therefore a negative
power.
• This means the slope resistance force will counteract
other resistance forces.
 Slope (grade) resistance
• Therefore , it happens that vehicles have to be
braked when driving downhill, either by applying
the wheel brakes, engine brake, or by retarders.
• Positive slope resistance power and forces have
to be considered well for the determination of
the required engine power and the
transformation of the torque to the tractive forces
on the wheels.
• The consumed energy for driving uphill may be
partially regained when driving down hill which of
course depends much on given road and traffic
conditions.
 Acceleration resistance
• While the vehicle is in linear motion, an inertial resistance
to motion due to rotating parts also exists.
• Rotating masses can be grouped into
– Parts rotating at engine speed :
• crankshaft, flywheel, clutch etc.
– Parts rotating at propeller shaft speed:
• transmission shaft, etc.
– Parts rotating at wheel speed :
• Drive axles, wheels, tires, etc.
 Acceleration resistance
• When the vehicle is accelerated, the rotating parts are also accelerated depending upon their
moments of inertia and the gear ratio in the drive line.
• The inertia moment of the engine flywheel is equal to the product of If * Ɛf ,where If is the moment of
inertia of the flywheel in N.m.s 2, and Ɛf is its angular acceleration in rad/s 2.
• The moment on the axle shaft during acceleration can be found from the formula:

Max = t ( M e - If * Ɛf ) itr

• The total moment of the inertia force from acceleration of the driving wheels is equal to the product
I2 * Ɛ2 , where I2 is the total moment of inertia of the driving wheels in N.m.s 2 and Ɛ2 is their angular
acceleration in rad/s2.
• Hence the moment (in N.m) on driving wheels in acceleration is:
t
Max = ( Me - If * Ɛf ) itr - I2 * Ɛ2

• on the basis of kinematics relationships, it may be written that

Ɛ2 = a/r , Ɛf = Ɛ2 * itr = a/r * itr

t
•
 
Inserting the values of Ɛ2 and Ɛf in to the equation Max =
t t
( Me - If * Ɛf ) itr - I2 * Ɛ2 , we obtain

Max = Me* itr - ( If * itr 2 + I2 ) * a/r

• Where a the acceleration of the wheel center, equal in linear motion to the acceleration of the gravity
center of the motor vehicle in m/s 2
 Acceleration resistance
• In this case, the peripheral force Fax(in N) acting on the
driving wheels of an automobile in acceleration can be
found from the formula:
Fax = Max / r = t (Me* itr ) /r - ( t I f * itr 2 + I2 ) * a / r2

Fax = Pt - (
t I * i 2
+ I2 ) * a /r2
f tr

• It follows from the latter equation that when a motor

vehicle is accelerating (a> 0), the peripheral force Fax on
the driving wheels is less than the tractive force Ft due to
the energy being expended to accelerate the rotating
elements of the power train system and the driving
wheels of the automobile.
• Conversely, during deceleration (a < 0), the peripheral
force is higher than the tractive force and the energy
accumulated during acceleration can be used to
continue the motion.
 Acceleration resistance (contd.)
• Since the power train of any vehicle comprises a number of rotating
elements which may have a great inertia momentum (engine crank
mechanism, flywheel, clutch, gears, shafts and wheels), their influence in
the energy demand for accelerating the vehicle cannot be neglected.
• Therefore, the power required to overcome the acceleration resistance is
determined for the total mass of the vehicle where the influence of the
inertia momentums of all rotating members is considered by the rotational
inertia coefficient e.
• Pa = Fax x v = m x a x e x v
• Where: e is the rotational inertia coefficient
• e is basically given by the summation of the inertia coefficients of all
rotating elements where transmission ratio with respect to the
driving wheels is essential.
e= 1+(Σɵj x i2j/mj) /r2w
– Where:
• rw – dynamic tire radius, m
• Ɵj – inertia moment of rotational elements, kg m 2
• Mj – mass of rotating elements, kg
• j – running number
• Ij – transmission ratio of rotating elements with respect to wheels
Acceleration resistance (contd.)
 It would be labor intensive to determine these
magnitudes for all rotating elements to finally calculate e.
 Estimates of e have been determined as average values
for cars by the following graph
Acceleration resistance (contd.)
• For the highest gears of modern cars from the graph is e
= 1.02…1.05, which may not be significant.
• The influence is much higher for lower gears which may
reach 1.25…1.5 and therefore remarkable portion of the
energy available from the engine is used for the
acceleration of all rotating elements.
• For trucks, since much heavier rotating elements and
greater transmission ratios are designed for them, their
influence in the vehicle acceleration is even more
remarkable.
• Therefore the first gear usually does not enable
maximum acceleration of any vehicle.
 Total motion resistance
• Graph of total motion resistance
 Traction and tractive force
• The force available at the contact between the drive
wheel tires and road is known as “tractive force”
• The ability of the drive wheels to transmit this effort with
out slipping is known as “traction”
• For motor vehicles it is typical that they are operated at
very much changing parameters ( low to high velocity,
riding up and down hill, empty to maximum load).
• These changes are unavoidable and to be accepted
• Only moderate improvements can be achieved through
proper road construction, traffic organization and control.
• Therefore, vehicles have to be designed accordingly to
meet these changing conditions.
 Traction and tractive force (contd.)
• The higher the engine torque Me and overall
transmission ratio itr between engine and driven wheels,
and the lower the power-transmission losses, the higher
is the tractive force Ft available at the drive wheels.
Ft = ( Me x itr x ɳtr ) / r
• The tractive force is partially consumed in overcoming
the running resistance. Numerically higher transmission
ratios are applied to deal with the substantially increased
running resistance encountered on gradients.
• When the tractive effort is greater than the total
resistance, the surplus tractive effort is utilized for
acceleration, hill climbing and draw-bar pull
 Road performance curves
• The power needed to propel a vehicle increases with the
cube of the speed.
• In this example graph, a power of 150kW is needed to
drive the vehicle at 200km/h
 Road performance curves (contd.)
• The power output curve of the engine installed in this vehicle
indicates that the engine produces a peak brake power of 150kW at
5000rpm.
• To attain maximum road speed, the overall gear ratio i of this
vehicle must be set so that the peak of the power of 150kW occurs
at a road speed of 200km/h and engine speed of 5000rpm.
 Road performance curves (contd.)
• Once the relative positions of the two curves have been established,
the vertical difference between the two curves gives the surplus
power available for acceleration, hill climbing and draw-bar pull
 Road performance curves (contd.)
• If friction is neglected, the power output from a transmission system is
similar to the engine brake power irrespective of the gear ratio.
• A change in the gear ratio of the vehicle causes the peak power P to move
horizontally from the position it occupied .
• Lowering or rising this gear ratio moves the power available curve to the left
(curve A) or to the right ( curve C).
• These two conditions are called under-gear and over-gear respectively.
 Road performance curves (contd.)
• Comparison of under-gearing and over-gearing
– Since more power is available for acceleration in
under-gearing, vehicle is livelier. Top gear
performance being flexible, less gear changing is
necessary when the vehicle encounters higher
tractive resistance.
– Due to lower engine speed for a given road speed,
better fuel economy, lower engine noise level and
less engine wear are achieved in over-gearing.
• A comparison of these two conditions indicate
that under gearing is more suitable for the
average car, and hence under –gearing to the
extent of about 10-20% is quite common.
 Road performance curves (contd.)
• Road speed versus power available at wheels
– When the power available matches the power required to push the
vehicle, the speed becomes constant.
– Maximum speed is reached when there is no excess power remaining
– If the vehicle is desired to run at a lower speed, the throttle is adjusted
accordingly so that the part throttle power available curve intersects the
power required curve at the desired road speed.
Road performance curves (contd.)
• Maximum surplus power and hence maximum surplus tractive effort is
provided at very low speeds of the vehicle. Therefore, for acceleration from
start, for climbing steeper gradient, and for large drawbar pull, first gear is
best suited.
Road performance curves (contd.)
 Road performance curves (contd.)
• Road speed versus tractive effort
 Road performance curves (contd.)
• The way to compare engine and motion resistance power like in the above
figure is specific for any particular vehicle. It does not enable a direct
comparison with other vehicles.
• The basic idea is to generalize the form of representation, especially, to
consider drag and rolling resistances as unavoidable components which will be
deducted from the engine power in order to have a clear information over the
surplus power ( or free tractive forces respectively) still available then.

• The vehicle velocity

• Furthermore, steady state riding is usually assumed so that Fa = 0.

• Dividing the equation by m x g and bringing the drag force to the left , the
equation becomes
 Road performance curves (contd.)

• The left side of the equation can be understood as difference of the

specific tractive force ftw acting on the driving wheels and the relative
drag force fai. Small letters are used for these specific forces.

• The right side of the equation gives the specific rolling and slope
resistance forces according to this equation

• An approximated form can be used for this expression

• The relative error of this approximation equals to the expression 1 –

(1/cosα).
 Road performance curves (contd.)

•The following table indicates this error depending on the gradient:

• Accepting this errors for normal gradients, the equation

can be rewritten as follows,

 Road performance curves (contd.)

• With this equation development, the specific free tractive forces remain as
specific slope resistance force fs = tan α
• Starting from the abscissa in the “Free Tractive Forces Diagram” (FTFD),
the negative terms f and fai are traced below zero and from here , the
specific tractive forces on the wheels ftw is added upwards for every gear as
schematically shown in the following graph.
 Road performance curves (contd.)
• The FTFD in this form is principally valid for any types of vehicles because
all forces are related to their total weights.
• By this the traction abilities of various vehicles can be easily compared. The
positive side of the graph is most frequently represented.
 Road performance curves (contd.)
• Using the maximum engine
power and speeds in the
equation

the tractive forces

hyperbolas tan α = f(V) are
added which represent the
envelop for all gear
characteristics.
 Road performance curves (contd.)
• Not loading the vehicle to its maximum payload , this
would give even greater (positive and negative) free
tractive forces so that a higher gradient can be overcome
or braked safely downhill ( or the positive forces are
used for acceleration)
• These features are usually not considered nor
represented in such graphs because the most critical
situations and traction abilities with full loading are to be
studied basically . Especially for commercial vehicles, it
is not economic to operate them at partial loading.
 Surplus tractive effort
• It was stated that the surplus tractive force remaining from
overcoming all the motion resistance forces can be used for
acceleration, hill climbing and drawbar pull

– Acceleration
– When the surplus tractive effort is fully utilized only for acceleration (Fs
= 0) of the vehicle, then:
• Fsur = Ftw – Ftr = Fa = m x a x e
• form this we can get the acceleration resulting from the surplus
tractive force
a = Ftw – Ftr / m x e
• Ftr in these cases is made up of rolling resistance and air resistance
• m is the mass of the vehicle
• e is the rotational inertia coefficient
 Surplus tractive effort (contd.)

– Gradability
• The maximum percentage grade, which a vehicle can
negotiate with full rated condition, is known as ‘Gradability’
• Hence, when the surplus tractive effort is fully utilized for
gradability ( Fa = 0)’ then:
• Fsur = m x g x Grdability / 100
• Therefore, Gradability (p) =100/m x g (Ftw – Ftr )

– Drawbar pull
• When the excess power is fully utilized for pulling extra load
attached to the vehicle (Fa = 0) , then:
• Maximum drawbar pull = Ftw – Ftr
 Surplus tractive effort (contd.)

• Example
– The engine of a vehicle is known to be able to provide
40.5 kw (BP) for propulsion purpose. In a certain
application , the vehicle weighting 12459 N is required
to pull a trailer of gross weight 10673 N at a speed of
57.75 km/h in top gear on level. The resistance to
motion is given by the equation R=aW + bV2, where
a=0.016 and b=0.055, W is in N and V in km/h. Find
out if the vehicle is adequate for the job if the
transmission efficiency is 90%. What is the pull in the
coupling at this speed? If the available power is just
utilized in top gear by suitably loading trailer, what is
the pull in the coupling at 57.75km/h?
 Surplus tractive effort (contd.)

• Solution
– Total weight,
W = 12459+10673=23132 N
– Resistance to motion,
Ftr = R = aW + bV2
= 0.016 x 23132 +0.055 x (57.75)2 = 553.32N
– Tractive effort,
Ftw = BP x 1000 x ηpt / V
– 40.5 x 1000 x 0.9 x 60 x 60 /(57.75 x 1000) = 2272.2 N
– Since Ftw > Ftr, the vehicle is adequate for the job
– The pull in the coupling at this speed = 0.016 x 10673 = 170.8 N
– The extra pull on the coupling when more weight on the trailer is added
is
Fsur = 2272.2 – 553.32 =1718.7 N
– Hence the total pull on the coupling at same speed with extra loading
1718.9 + 170.8 = 1889.7 N