The Age of Zero-Emissions Heavy-Duty Trucks Begins

About 3.7 million heavy-duty trucks are in use in the U.S., shipping goods across the country. They’re usually powered by diesel engines that are noisy and emit pollution. According to IDTechEx, despite representing only 9% of the global vehicle stock, these large diesel truck engines represent 39% of the transport sectors' greenhouse gas emissions, and about 5% of CO₂ emissions from fossil fuels.

But this may soon change. For those in the automotive world trying to convince the boss that climate change is an important strategic issue for business, something important is happening: Companies are going after green dollars, money spent to reduce pollution and waste, and in doing so, they’re also demonstrating good corporate citizenship.

Over the next year, the number of different zero-emissions freight vehicles will increase significantly. Manufacturers including Ford, GM, Peterbilt, Tesla, and Volvo are investing in all-electric trucks with Daimler, Hyundai, and Toyota working on fuel-cell-powered vehicles.

Tesla

For example, EV maker Tesla is planning to produce a semi, and has pre-orders from giants such as Anheuser-Busch, DHL, FedEx, J.B. Hunt Transport Services, PepsiCo, UPS, and Walmart (Fig. 1). Tesla’s electric Class-8 Semi truck will come in 300-mile-range and a 500-mile-range models. According to the company the Semi will accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 20 seconds while carrying a 40-ton full load. It will be able to maintain that speed while traveling up a 5% grade.

During Tesla’s most recent earnings report, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said that the Semi is ready for production—all engineering work is now complete—but the automaker can’t achieve volume production until the company ramps up its 4680 battery cell production. The company expects to begin deliveries of Tesla Semi sometime this year.

Kenworth

The new zero-emission Kenworth T680E is the truck maker’s first Class 8 battery-electric model in its 97-year history. The T680E has an estimated operating range of 150 miles, depending on application. It uses a CCS1 dc fast charger with maximum rate of 120 kWh and has an estimated 3.3-hour charging time. The Kenworth T680E is equipped with 536 hp of continuous power and up to 670-hp peak power plus 1,623 lb-ft of torque.

Peterbilt

Peterbilt’s Model 579EV is now available for customer orders, with production expected to start by Q2 2021 (Fig. 2). The fully integrated, all-electric powertrain in the Model 579EV uses thermally controlled lithium-iron-phosphate battery packs to provide a range of up to 150 miles. When used in conjunction with a recommended dc fast-charger, the battery packs recharge in 3-4 hours, making the 579EV well-suited for regional haul pickup and delivery and last-mile operations.

Volvo

Volvo Trucks brought its zero-emission truck, the VNR Electric, to market at the end of 2020. The VNR Electric has a 150-mile range, with speeds of up to 65 mph on the highway. It’s designed for customer applications and driving cycles with local and regional distribution ranges, including food and beverage and pickup and delivery routes. The truck comes in three models: a straight truck; a 4x2 tractor; and a 6x2 tractor. It employs 264-kWh lithium-ion batteries, which can charge up to 80% within 70 minutes, according to the company.

Daimler

Daimler, the largest truck maker in the world, is now delivering its Freightliner eCascadia Class 8 truck. In the eCascadia, when the driver depresses the accelerator about halfway (50%), the powertrain controller first checks with other components to determine if giving 50% torque to the e-motor is both safe and efficient for the system.

If all requirements are met, the powertrain controller allows the inverter to pull energy from the battery and send it to the e-motors to meet the driver’s demand for 50% torque. If the powertrain controller determines that giving 50% torque isn’t recommended (if the truck is stationary or moving slowly), it will reduce torque to the ideal level, for example, 30%.

Designed for the eCascadia, the all-electric Detroit ePowertrain employs an eAxle electric drivetrain. By integrating an electric motor, transmission, and specialized electronics within a compact unit, the eAxle can directly power the truck’s wheels.

The Detroit ePowertrain offers two Detroit eAxle designs. A dual motor setup has a max torque of 23,000 lb-ft and max power of 360 hp. A single motor design offers max torque of 11,500 lb-ft and max power of 180 hp.

GM

GM is getting in the electric delivery game via a new business unit called BrightDrop, whose electric EV600 package van will be on roads in late 2021 for its first customer, FedEx.

BrightDrop’s EV600 is an electric light commercial vehicle purpose-built for the delivery of goods and services over long ranges. EV600 features include:

• Powered by GM’s Ultium battery system, the EV600 is targeted to have an estimated range of up to 250 miles on a full charge.
• A peak charge rate of up to 170 miles of EV range per hour via 120-kW dc fast charging.
• Over 600 cubic feet of cargo area.
• Available at a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of less than 10,000 pounds.

Standard safety features include: Front and Rear Park Assist, Automatic Emergency Braking, Forward Collision Alert, Following Distance Indicator, Front Pedestrian Braking, Lane Keep Assist with Lane Departure Warning, IntelliBeam automatic high beams, and an HD Rear Vision Camera. Additional available safety and driver-assistance features include: Rear Cross Traffic Braking, Blind Zone Steering Assist, Reverse Automatic Braking, HD Surround Vision, Rear Pedestrian Alert, and Enhanced Automatic Emergency Braking, among others.

BrightDrop expects to make the EV600s available to more customers starting in early 2022.

Ford

Auto giant Ford has jumped into a new sector of the electric-vehicle market with plans to develop an all-electric version of its Transit cargo van, with availability starting in late 2021. The vehicle is expected to have a range of 126 miles. Research from the company’s internal data says the average transit user drives 74 miles per day, well within the projected range of the electric version of the vehicle.

Rivian

Rivian last year received a huge order of 100,000 all-electric delivery vans from e-commerce giant Amazon. As you read this, Amazon has begun testing the first lot of its Rivian Automotive electric delivery vans in Los Angeles. Rivian expects the first vans to make deliveries for Amazon during the second half of 2021, a total of 10,000 vans to be in service by the end of 2022, and the full 100,000 by 2030.

Fuel-Cell Electric

Refueling time and range are important factors for the operation of heavy-duty trucks. In this regard, hydrogen is a suitable fuel for heavy-duty trucks by ensuring a short refueling time and long distance driving while promoting a zero-emission solution.

Daimler has revealed a hydrogen fuel-cell concept vehicle called the Mercedes-Benz GenH2 truck, saying it would be able to travel up to 621 miles on a single tank. The series-production version of the GenH2 Truck is said to have a gross vehicle weight of 40 tons and a payload of 25 tons. Two liquid-hydrogen tanks and a fuel-cell system will make this payload and long range possible, and therefore form the core of the GenH2 Truck concept.

Daimler Trucks prefers to use liquid hydrogen (LH2), because in this state, the energy carrier has a higher energy density in relation to volume than gaseous hydrogen. As a result, the tanks of a fuel-cell truck using liquid hydrogen are much smaller and, due to the lower pressure, significantly lighter. This gives the trucks a larger cargo space and higher payload weight. At the same time, more hydrogen can be carried, which significantly increases the trucks’ range.

GenH2 trucks will begin customer trials in 2023, and series production in the second half of this decade.

General Motors is joining other automakers such as Toyota in developing hydrogen fuel-cell technology for long-haul trucking. GM is partnering with truck maker Navistar and hydrogen provider OneH2 to develop a complete zero-emissions long-haul truck system across the United States.

The trucks will be powered by hydrogen rather than batteries, thereby eliminating the need for charging stations on long truck routes.

Navistar International Corp will use two GM Hydrotec fuel-cell power cubes to power its International RH Series fuel-cell EV truck. Each Hydrotec power cube contains more than 300 hydrogen fuel cells along with thermal- and power-management systems (Fig. 3).

The hydrogen-powered trucks will go into production in late 2023 as a 2024 model. Target driving range is more than 500 miles, with a hydrogen fueling time of less than 15 minutes.

Late last year, Toyota announced a deal with truck maker Hino to jointly develop hydrogen fuel-cell trucks for North America. The initial demonstration vehicle is expected to arrive in the first half of 2021. The companies will leverage the newly developed Hino XL Series chassis with Toyota's fuel-cell technology.

Korea’s Hyundai has been working on its Xcient hydrogen fuel cell, which can be charged within 8-20 minutes per single charge, based on 350-bar tank pressure. Xcient trucks have a battery-pack capacity of 73.2 kWh (24.4 kWh × 3) and a drive range of around 400 km per charge (in the 4 x 2 configuration, while towing an 18-ton trailer), according to the company. An electric motor (max. power 350 kW) generates driving force from the electric energy supplied from the stack and the battery.

Government Backing

California’s Air Resources Board (CARB) passed the Advanced Clean Trucks regulation last year mandating that truck manufacturers transition from diesel trucks and vans to electric zero-emission trucks beginning in 2024. By 2045, every new truck sold in California will be zero-emission. Starting in 2024, commercial truck manufacturers must sell zero-emissions trucks as an increasing percentage of their annual statewide sales.

President Biden announced that his administration is planning to replace the federal government’s fleet of combustion-engine vehicles with electric vehicles manufactured in the U.S. According to the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA), the federal fleet comprises near 650,000 vehicles with around 100,000 medium-duty and 40,000 heavy-duty trucks in the inventory.