The new common rail diesel engines from Volkswagen - Basic concept for lasting CO2 reduction

and compliance with future exhaust emissions values - Demands and challenges on the drivetrain
F. Rudolph, P. Matulla, S. Hunkert (Volkswagen AG, Wolfsburg)

Engine energy flow analysis

As an element of increased efficiency and improved emissions, a supercharged diesel engine,
meanwhile equipped with cooled high pressure exhaust gas recirculation and, in future, also with
additional cooled low pressure exhaust gas recirculation, can be used as an example to show that
up to 44% of the fuel energy is converted into drive performance/torque, fig. 2, in the rated torque
range. This very good figure for a thermal motor is only possible by intensive component
optimisation and utilisation of energy from the exhaust gas flow.
In real driving operation, these high torque levels are of course not required on an ongoing basis.
The engine is actually more likely to be driven just in part load and will not reach optimal operating
temperature if used, as is commonly so, over short distances. At the 2000 rpm operating point with
2 bar effective mean pressure, fig. 3, at least 26.4 kW chemical energy is used for the 6.2 kW
returned, which means the good full load figures are quickly put into perspective.

Fig. 2: Energy flow of diesel engine in area of maximum torque

Fig. 3: Energy flow in the 2000 rpm operating point with 2 bar effective mean pressure
The following conclusions, among others, can be drawn from these observations:
 At the best points under optimal operating conditions, thermodynamic efficiency approaches an
optimum. Further potential can only be opened up with a very large amount of technical effort.
 The energy flow from "heat" and "exhaust gas" still offer notable potential for improving the
overall balance of energy.
 The large spread between full load and the more commonly used part load in real driving
operation with relatively unfavourable part load efficiency makes it evident that action is required
with regards to future drivetrains.
 Load point deflection by downsizing concepts and also even greater utilisation of the exhaust
gas energy by supercharging concepts and the introduction of a thermal management system in
combination with demand-orientated oil and water pumps offer answers here.
 There will be even greater importance on the interplay between engine and gearbox in future as
the correlations with regards to efficiency in part load and full load will affect gearboxes in the
same way as the engine on one hand. On the other, the interplay between engine and gearbox
with regards to load point deflection, thermal management and emissions still offers relatively
high potential because in the past the focus of engine and gearbox developers has shifted
within the respective system limits.

Load point deflection and its limits

The gearbox plays an important role in selecting the operating point of an engine, prescribed by
the speed and effective torque (effective mean pressure). While only a certain engine performance
is required across the route and driver profile, the way in which this performance is to be made
available for the operating point of the engine is determined by the relevant transmission ratio in
the gearbox. By selecting the operating point, the gearbox determines the fuel consumption and
thereby the CO2 emissions of the engine, fig. 4, in a very significant way.

Fig. 4: Consumption characteristic

The operating point of the engine influences not just the CO2 emissions but also the proportion of
other emissions. Based on the NOx emissions critical for the emissions standard, it can be seen
that the requirements for different emissions values are partly opposed, fig. 5.
However, in order to still take advantage of the potential that arises from operating point deflection,
it is necessary to extend the observations beyond the relevant system limits and derive necessary
optimisations, for example in the direction of internal engine combustion processes or exhaust gas
aftertreatment systems.
 Fig. 5: NOx characteristic with operating point deflection

Demands on the drivetrain

Against the backdrop of the aforementioned emissions thresholds, there are additional demands
on the drivetrain aside from its main role of transmitting the power provided by the engine safely to
the tyres throughout the effective service life.
The choice of an operating point optimised both in terms of fuel consumption and also for nitrogen
oxide and carbon particulate emissions finds its place here at the top of the list. This requirement
results in optimisation of the specific fuel consumption of the engine in relation to performance of
the combustion engine.
The fuel requirement can be further reduced by lowering the amount of power made available by
the engine. This can occur on the vehicle side, for example, by reducing the aerodynamic or rolling
resistances. In terms of the drivetrain, the minimisation of own losses can be derived from this as
the second important requirement, which equates to optimisation of the drivetrain efficiency.
Selection of favourable operating point
On the basis of classic gearbox types, there are essentially two ways in which the operating point
of the engine can be determined:
1. Constructively by defining the transmission ratios and number of gear stages or speeds.
2. Practically by choosing the optimum driving stage on automatic gearboxes and by gear change
recommendation in the display with manual gearboxes.
While the transmission ratio for first gear is determined in essence by the load demand or
gradability, a greater gear spread of the overall transmission and number and increments of
additional gears can form the foundation for favourable operating point selection. The rising
number of gears, in particular, offers the opportunity of not having to push the engine to the hilt in
top gear whilst acceleration values and gear increments remain acceptable for the customer and it
also allows the top or upper gears to be configured from a fuel consumption perspective. On
manual gearboxes, 6 gear stages still will still dominate as a compromise between operability,
consumption, sportiness and comfort, while 7 or 8 gear stages will be used on automatic
gearboxes. To take full effect of the potential of greater gear spread for operating point deflection,
future engines must have more corpulent torque, particularly at low engine speeds.
With their wide variety of choice, the transmission ratios established by the design offer the
foundation for consumption-optimised operating point selection. The choice of driving stage and
thereby fuel consumption in a certain driving situation depends essentially on what gear the driver
chooses, at least on manual gearboxes.
In contrast to this, the gear stage selection is determined on automatic gearboxes by the
transmission software. Special features both in the consumption and also emissions characteristic
of the combustion engine can thereby be taken into account when determining the operating point.
To make consumption-favourable gear selection possible also for drivers of manual transmission
vehicles, a gear change lamp in the cockpit, for example, can indicate when to next change up a
gear. This type of gear selection recommendation is already used by Volkswagen in vehicles of the
"BlueMotion" series. Unfortunately, the consumption potential of this measure is still not taken into
consideration in the common consumption cycles, though the customer can expect a considerable
fuel saving.

Fig. 8: Pattern of different driving resistance lines in the consumption map

Drivetrain losses
If the flow of energy is observed in the drivetrain, similar ratios to the combustion engine can be
seen. In areas of high load there are very high degrees of efficiency in all gearbox concepts. With
manual gearboxes, for example, about 96% is attained; automatic gearboxes are just below, fig. 9.
This is not the case in part load operation. The levels of efficiency are considerably poorer here,
but the differences between the individual gearbox concepts are plainer to see here as well, fig.
10. The reason for this is because of load-independent losses in the gearbox, which, in contrast to
load-dependent losses, do not depend on the torque to be transmitted and, even at zero load, lead
to so-called drag losses. These different types of loss are clearly noticeable if the torque losses are
observed instead of the degrees of efficiency, fig. 11. On all gearbox concepts it is evident that the
torque losses rise as the load increases. The reason for this is load-dependent gear teeth and
bearing losses.
The constant loss percentage above torque includes the load-independent transmission losses.
They are comprised of losses from the gear oil pump, open clutches/couplings, seals/gaskets,
lubrication and also bearing preloads. The notable differences between the gearbox concepts arise
because some sources of loss, such as the oil pump for example, are not relevant in selected
gearboxes. The proportional rise in percentage of constant load-independent losses in the overall
load explains why the levels of transmission efficiency in the low load range are dramatically
poorer in fig. 10.
Measuring degrees of efficiency
The low load range is a common driving range in real life operation and is therefore the focus of
observations with regards to improving efficiency. If the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) is
considered, for example, engine torque levels in a range between 50 - 75 Nm are reached during
acceleration in urban areas, while figures for constant driving are below 25 Nm in part. Even in the
interurban range of the NEDC, the figures are mostly under 100 Nm during constant operation.
Only during phases of acceleration are the values higher.
A further important influencing factor for transmission losses is the temperature. As temperature
decreases, the viscosity of the gear oil falls and transmission losses rise over proportionately,
fig.12.
While classic levels of efficiency examinations are still carried out at an operating temperature of
80 to 100°C - even for trial technic al reasons, this temperature is rarely attained during normal
driving operation.
If the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) is viewed once again, the temperature range during the
near 20 minute cycle on manual gearboxes ranges from 20 to 40°C.
For the other gearbox concepts as well, the temperatures stay mostly below 60°C if we exclude
heating up from external means by the engine coolant.
For effective improvement in the level of drivetrain efficiency, it is important to view the areas of
operation relevant for the customer. Full load measurements at high gearbox temperatures do
return considerable levels of efficiency. However, they are often not suitable for correctly assessing
the potential of a measure.

Fig. 10: Degrees of efficiency of different gearbox concepts

Fig. 11: Torque losses of different gearbox concepts

 Fig.12

Direct information about the fuel saving potential of a transmission measure, which is growing in
importance as a benchmark for assessment, can be gained from vehicle consumption
measurements on the rolling road. The measurements, however, are extremely time intensive and
generally do not offer the required accuracy to assess also the smallest drivetrain modifications.
Remedy can be found here in a test bed measurement, which emulates the conditions on the
rolling road for consumption testing, for example, for the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC).
The vehicle-specific engine speed and torque profile of the test cycle is driven here, which
inevitably covers the customer-relevant low load range. The system starts - as with vehicle
measurement - at a temperature of 20°C. Due to transmission losses in the gearbox, there is a
slow and inhomogeneous transmission heat build-up, which is also evident during real operation.
The transmission loss output is the result of the difference between input and output performance.
In addition to the conventional loss percentages, this transmission loss output is also taken into
account for acceleration processes. Accumulated over the cycle, the required energy for the
gearbox can be calculated, which can be converted directly into fuel consumption.
Figure 13 shows an example pattern of the performance loss of a rear axle gearbox during NEDC
testing on the test bed. The influence of different gear oils was tested on the energy and fuel
requirement of the gearbox during the cycle. Differences in the scale of 0.01/100km were able to
be calculated here. Differences are at such a low level that they would not have been able to be
identified through vehicle consumption measurement.
The differences arising from the installation of angular contact ball bearings instead of ball bearings
are more evident. While the degree of efficiency measurements at full load differ only by one
percentage point, very notable differences can be seen, above all, during the NEDC test on the
test bed in the urban area. They can be explained by the depreciation of load-independent losses
caused by bearing preload in the taper roller bearings. The constant influence of the losses has a
higher percentage value in the low load range. The fuel saving of 0.1/100km calculated from the
performance losses was able to be confirmed in a vehicle consumption measurement.
Thermal management
The thermal management example shows that to improve the level of drivetrain efficiency it is not
necessary to stay just within the confines of the system's own limits.
As fig. 12 already shows, the gearbox losses increase as temperatures fall. One way of reducing
the transmission losses is by targeted heating of the gearbox using the engine coolant, which
warms up quickly. This measure has already been implemented on water-cooled gearboxes. On
gearboxes with air-oil heat exchangers, the installation of an additional coolant-oil heat exchanger
can be taken advantage of to heat the gear oil.
 Fig. 13: Performance loss of a rear axle gearbox in the NEDC

A hose thermostat, designed only to open once a defined coolant temperature is reached, can be
used to prevent heat being drawn from the engine too prematurely, causing a drop in the engine
efficiency. The demand during engine development to make the opening temperature of the
thermostat as high as possible conflicts with the demand on transmission developers who aim to
keep the opening temperature as low as possible to improve transmission efficiency.
It is important to observe the engine and gearbox as an overall system. Whether and to what
degree the opening temperature of, for example, a hose thermostat affects fuel consumption can
be determined through consumption measurement on the overall vehicle. Since the consumption
differences move in a very low range, the measuring complexity is still relatively high. An
alternative to measuring is by simulating the heat system with the respective levels of efficiency.
Through improvement in the degree of transmission efficiency, the gearbox's own heat becomes
less and so too does the gearbox temperature; the potential that arises from heating up of the
gearbox is therefore more likely to rise in future. An extension of the thermal management activities
to include gearboxes cannot be ruled out. At this time, gearboxes feature neither oil cooling nor oil
heating.

Fig. 14: Engine coolant and gear oil temperatures in the NEDC
Fine optimisation based on the 1.9L 77 kW TDI® "BlueMotion"
With a plethora of BlueMotion models, Volkswagen will introduce vehicles on the market within the
scope of a long term CO2 reduction strategy, which, in the framework of today's emissions
legislation, will shift the overall compromise in the trade-off clearly towards "consumption and CO2
emissions". Main components of this concept are:
 Reduction in driving resistance through fine aerodynamic tuning in the area of engine
throughflow and the underbody as well as a reduction in the standing height
 Rolling resistance optimised tyres with 0.3 bar greater inflation pressure
 Longer transmission ratios in the upper gears, optical gear change recommendation for the
customer (depending on the model)
 Adapted engine control unit applications with the following focal points: Reduced load change
work, exhaust gas recirculation strategy adapted to this, commencement of injection calibration
and also lower idling speed.
 With these measures, the fuel consumption in the Polo, for example, was reduced in the NEDC
from 4.4 to 3.8 ltr./100 km. Minor losses are only noticeable in the area of elasticity in the upper
gears.

Fig. 16: Consumption reduction measures based on Polo BlueMotion