978-1-4244-4547-9/09/$26.00 ©2009 IEEE TENCON 2009
A Study on Plug-in Hybrid Electic Vehicles
Mojtaba Shams-Zahraei and Abbas Z. Kouzani
School of Engineering
Deakin University
Geelong, Victoria 3217, Australia
mshams, kouzani@deakin.edu.au
Abstract—Plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV), which is a
hybrid vehicle whose batteries can be recharged by plugging into
an electric power source, is creating many interests due to its
significant potential to improve fuel efficiency and reduce
pollution. PHEVs would be the next generation of vehicles that
are expected to replace conventional hybrid electric vehicles. This
paper presents a study on PHEV. It gives a review of different
drivetrain architectures associated with PHEVs. In addition,
different control strategies that could bring about realization of
advantages of PHEV capabilities are discussed and compared.
Keywords-PHEV; drivetrain architectures; power management
I. INTRODUCTION
Living in the era of increasing environmental sensibility
and rise in fuel price makes it necessary to develop a
generation of vehicle that are more fuel efficient and
environmental friendly. Hybrid electric vehicles could meet
these demands [1]. Plug-in hybrid vehicles have recently
created interests among leading automotive industry
manufactures because of their potential to replace fuel-
generated energy with battery-stored electricity in short daily
journeys, and also continuing extended range as a HEV
afterwards. This feature makes PHEV very low or zero
emission vehicle during their Charge Depletion (CD) or All-
Electric Range (AER).
A plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) is a hybrid
vehicle whose batteries can be recharged by plugging into an
electric power source. A PHEV combines features of
conventional hybrid electric vehicles and battery electric
vehicles, possessing both an internal combustion engine and
batteries for power. IEEE-USA Energy Policy Committee
defines plug-in hybrid electric vehicle as “a hybrid vehicle
which contains at least: (1) a battery storage system of 4 kWh
or more, used to power the motion of the vehicle; (2) a means
of recharging that battery system from an external source of
electricity; and (3) an ability to drive at least 16 km (ten miles)
in all-electric range, and consume no petrol.” These are
distinguished from hybrid cars, which are mass-marketed
today, that do not use any electricity from the grid [2].
Benefits of PHEV drivetrain cover both individual and
national aspects. Using the energy charged into the energy
storage from utility grid to displace part of petroleum is the
major feature of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. This means
using a cleaner and between three to four times cheaper energy
in comparison to petrol [2, 3]. The widespread use of plug-in
hybrid electric vehicles whose battery-generated energy is
sufficient to meet average daily travel needs could reduce
petroleum consumption between 40 to 50 percent [4-6]. In
national point of view, the full penetration of PHEV in society
results in its energy dependence shifting from petrol to sources
of electricity generation, and from the green house gas (GHG)
and other air pollutant emission shifting from high population
urban area to electricity plants area. However there is an
opportunity to produce the electricity from nuclear energy or
other sources of renewable energies [3]. Off-peak charging
strategy or more sophisticated vehicle to grid charging
technology help load leveling in electricity generation industry
which will consequently result in decreasing electricity cost
because of reduction in power plant start-up and operation and
maintenance costs [5]. However, charging strategy significantly
affects the electricity consumption in power generation point of
view [7].
The aim of this paper is to present the reader with up-to-
date information on PHEVs making it easier for the reader to
establish an understanding of the operation principals and
applicability of the available architectures, strategies, and
technologies.
This paper first reviews the different drivetrain architecture
of plug-in hybrid vehicles and current manufacturer activities
in the field. Then, compatibility of different drivetrains to
appeal most advantage of PHEV features is discussed.
Different control strategies for newly developed plug-in hybrid
vehicles is reviewed and compared.
II. PHEV ARCITECTURE
All hybrid drivetrain consists of Series, Parallel, Series-
Parallel, and Two-Mode Power Split hybrids are compatible to
change to a PHEV. However, there are always some potentials
and drawbacks in each of them. Series configuration (see Fig.
1-a) is commonly recognized as an electric vehicle which has
an onboard engine and generator to recharge the battery so it is
easier to upgrade it to a PHEV. This drivetrain already has a
sized electric motor to coupe maximum power demand of drive
cycle. The increase in power capability of the battery provides
the maximum power demand of drive cycle which means all
electric range and zero emission could be met even in vigorous
driving situation. The advantage of engine operation
independent of wheel speed offers engine operation on its most
efficient point. However, the known drawback of this drivetrain
which is twice conversion of engine mechanical power to
electrical and again to mechanical in electric motor reduces
overall efficiency of drive train after depletion of batteries [1,
1
8]. General Motors is planning Chevrolet Volt PHEV with
series drivetrain for 2011.
In parallel drive train, both engine and electric motor can
propel the wheel directly (see Fig. 1-b). A sized electric motor
as well as batteries are necessary to upgrade a parallel
drivetrain to a PHEV. In pre-transmission parallel architecture
similar to Honda Insight, Civic, and Accord hybrids a small
electric motor is located between engine and transmission
replacing flywheel. It is also possible for a parallel hybrid to
use its engine to drive one of the vehicle's axles, while its
electric motor drives the other axle. DaimlerChrysler PHEV
Sprinter has this powertrain configuration [8].
Series-parallel or power split drivetrain, the most
commonly used drivetrain, is shown in Fig. 1-c. Toyota Prius,
the most sold hybrid vehicle, Toyota Highlander, Lexus RX
400h, and Ford Escape and Mariner benefit from this
architecture. The series-parallel hybrid powertrain combines
the series hybrid system with the parallel hybrid system to
achieve the maximum advantages of both systems. In this
powertrain, mechanical energy passes through the power split
in two series and parallel paths. In the series path, engine
power output is converted to electrical energy via a generator
which runs the electric motor to drive the car. In the parallel
path, on the other hand, there is no energy conversion and the
mechanical energy of the engine is directly transferred to the
final drive block, through the power split which is a planetary
gear system [10].
From the PHEV compatibility point of view, same as
Parallel drivetrain, this architecture does not have a sized
electric motor for the maximum demand [11]. Pure electric
mode is defined for series-parallel drivetrain which means the
engine can turn off completely during AER or CD. However,
during vehicle high speed, there is still a generator maximum
speed constraint for continuing in AER without turning the
engine on since the generator speed increases sharply
proportional to motor speed with ring to sun gear teeth number
ratio in planetary gear when the engine does not rotate. This is
due to the speed equation between series-parallel components
which is as follows:
( ) MotEngGen RR ωωω −+= 1 (1)
where ω is angular velocity and R is ring to sun gear teeth
number ratio. One of the generator rolls is engine starting when
necessary so generator should have the torque capability to
propel the engine in generator high speed which coincides with
vehicle high speed. This leads us to the point that the definition
proposed by IEEE-USA Energy Policy Committee for PHEV
about the ability to drive at least 16 km (ten miles) in all-
electric range and consume no petrol, is not consistence
because this series-parallel physical constraint needs engine
operation in vehicle high speed.
Currently, EnergyCS, EDrive, and Hymotion companies
offer PHEV upgrade kits for Toyota Prius and Ford Escape and
Mariner [5].
Saturn Vue Green Line SUV with Two Mode Hybrid
drivetrain used in GM hybrid vehicles will be the first
commercialized PHEV in 2010.
(a)
(b)
(c)
Figure 1. (a) Series, (b) parallel, and (c) series-parallel drivetrain PHEVs [9]
III. DRIVETRAIN COMPATIBILITY FOR PHEV
Different simulation tools with backward and forward
approaches or most of the time combination of them are
applied for modeling of HEV and PHEV to evaluate their
characteristics and compatibilities. Advance Vehicle Simulator
(ADVISOR) developed in National Renewable Energy
Laboratory [9] and Powertrain System Analysis Toolkit
(PSAT) developed in Argonne National Laboratory [12] are
two dominant simulation tools for advanced vehicles. However
2
Gao et al. [6] used a simulation software developed in The
Advanced Vehicle Systems and Research Program at Texas
A&M University. Other researcher have used their own
simulation modeling developed in Matlab/Simulink [13].
Li et al. [14] have compared series and parallel drivetrains
of an assumed mid-sized SUV with completely same sized
components in ADVISOR. They have utilized a charge
depletion control strategy which sets a large SOC envelop
between the maximum and minimum SOC levels. Two
simulations with different battery capacity, which performed on
four urban dynamometer driving schedule (UDDS) and one
highway fuel economy test (HWFET), resulted in different
outcomes in term of overall powertrain efficiency. The first
simulation with 290 kg and 60 Ah Nickel-Metal Hydride
battery pack resulted in 11.2% better overall drivetrain
efficiency for parallel architecture. This caused by better
efficiency of electric motor operation in propelling and
regenerative braking modes in parallel drivetrain. Another
simulation with upgraded battery to a 418 kg and 80 Ah power
showed that series powertrain passed all the drive cycle in AER
and it was not necessity to turn the engine on. While the overall
efficiency of Parallel configuration did not improve with
upgraded battery pack, the series powertrain showed 30.5%
better overall efficiency in comparison with parallel drivetrain.
The series powertrain had less pollutant operation while had
sluggish acceleration performance due to electric motor and
battery power limitations. The study has concluded with
limited onboard electric energy, the parallel PHEV overall
efficiency and acceleration performance are more than series
drivetrain. However, by increasing the battery capacity the
series drivetrain is completely preferable [14].
Jenkins et al. [11] have investigated the correlation of the
motor and battery size with fuel economy of Prius series-
parallel HEV in ADVISOR. The aim of the investigation was
to check the compatibility of series-parallel drivetrain to
change to a PHEV. As mentioned in Introduction section,
neither parallel nor series-parallel drivetrains have sized motor
and battery to run in AER in high power demand of drive
cycles, therefore when changing these drivetrain to PHEV, the
effect of upgraded motor and battery size on efficiency should
be considered. Jenkins et al. simulations showed that there is a
slight fuel economy improvement if the motor upgraded to up
to 75 kW and its mass goes up to 60 kg while the battery is
remained unchanged and depleted from 70% to 50% SOC
during the test. The other simulation showed fuel efficiency
improved up to 80% by upgrading the batteries to up to 25 kW
and its mass to up to 400 kg. After these optimum points, the
upgrading of batteries resulted in lower efficiencies.
Hymotion Prius and EnergyCS Prius were tested in the
Advanced Powertrain Research Facilities (APRF) at Argonne
National Laboratory (ANL) in UDDS and HWFET [15].
Hymotion Prius utilizes a Lithium polymer battery parallel to
Prius NiMH battery and EnergyCS replaces Prius battery with
a higher capacity Li-ion battery. The tests showed that the
engine during charge depletion mode ignited in higher vehicle
speeds and remained on less frequently than charge sustained
mode. The operation of PHEV Prius is similar to OEM Prius
during charge sustained mode. The test showed about two third
and half of fuel consumption replaced by electricity in UDDS
and HWFET respectively in charge depletion mode. However,
the engine efficiencies of PHEV were 20% and 24.5% for cold
and hot start respectively while 30.8% and 34.1% during
charge sustained mode. As mentioned in Introduction section,
series-parallel drivetrain needs engine operation in higher
vehicle speeds because of generator maximum speed constraint
so the electric energy consumption is reduced if the vehicle is
mostly used in highway drive cycles. The Hymotion battery
has enough energy capacity to run in four UDDS or HWFET
cycles in charge depleting modes. The temperature of the
engine has significant effect on its combustion efficiency and
emission and is important to maintain the catalyst operative
temperature. This factor should be considered in power
management of PHEVs.
Freyermuth et al. [8] have compared all three PHEV
configurations in PSAT. The components of a midsize sedan in
each drivetrain sized to meet following performances:
• 0-60 mph < 9 s
• Gradeability 6% at 65 mph
• Maximum speed > 100 mph
Two different 16 km (10 mile) and 64 km (40 mile) all-
electric range in UDDS were assumed for sizing of battery. The
component sizes were different because of the mentioned
sizing procedure which is unlike similar component sizing in
[14]. In urban driving condition, series-parallel showed best
fuel economy in comparison with series and parallel
configuration. Parallel drivetrain had completely better
efficiency in 16 km AER in comparison with series one
whereas in 64 km AER parallel and series performances were
almost similar. In highway driving condition, series-parallel
and parallel architectures showed similar and better efficiency
in comparison to series architecture. The engine efficiency of
series PHEV was the best since the engine performs
independent of wheel speed. Series-Parallel as well had better
engine efficiency in comparison with parallel but, because of
power recirculation especially in high vehicle speed, had
similar overall efficiency to parallel configuration. The
difference in results in comparison with [14] is due to different
sizing approach and control strategies.
As PHEV idea solved the problem of low efficiency of
series powertrain at least during AER, we can say that similar
to what Li et al. [14] asserted, if the high capacity battery is
available, the series drivetrain is appealing. Volt GM is
selected this drivetrain option with a 64 km AER battery
capability. As a PHEV customer, if your daily commute is less
than all electric range of series PHEV, you rarely pay for petrol
refills. Series-Parallel has a more complicated configuration
that we can strongly say has the most efficient charge sustained
mode when acts as a traditional HEV and completely
competitive charge depletion mode. In spite of the fact that we
cannot define AER for this drivetrain in high speed where
engine ignition is inevitable, the charge depletion mode is
completely efficient. When talking about the overall
performance of PHEV, performance will vary dramatically,
depending on driving style and driving conditions than
conventional hybrids. This is due to the added weight of a large
3
battery that once depleted in all electric range or charge
depletion mode is just an extra load.
IV. POWER FLOW CONTROL STRATEGY
After The full advantage of the PHEV powertrain is gained
through an appropriate power flow control strategy. The
controller determines operating points for each component and
transfers the adequate commands to the local controller of each
subsystem. In conventional HEV, the aim of power strategy is
to maintain the battery SOC in adequate range with
consideration for the battery health. However, Grid charged
battery of PHEV offers the option of using electricity and fuel
energy simultaneously in which using of stored electric energy
is preferable.
The first option for power management of PHEV is to run
the vehicle on pure electric mode until all energy stored in
battery depleted, which is the definition of AER. Afterward, the
vehicle acts as a conventional HEV in charge sustained mode
to steady the SOC. If the distance of journey between
recharging is less than the defined PHEV AER, then the most
efficient mode of operation is just electric mode which does not
use a drop of petrol. However, in real condition, many
commutes are longer and sometimes the power demand is
higher than battery capability which means inevitable engine
operation. The surveys in [6, 16] have presented charge
depletion (CD) strategy, using both battery and engine
simultaneously, would be more efficient in comparison with
simple AER followed by CS control strategies if the journey
exceeds AER.
Gao et al. has suggested two different Electric
Vehicle/Charge Sustained (EV/CS) and blended control
strategies for parallel configuration [6]. They have suggested a
manual shifting option between EV and CS for driver. In EV,
the vehicle uses the stored energy in battery aggressively and in
CS, SOC of battery sustained around specific value. In blended
control strategy or charge depletion mode, both engine and
motor operate simultaneously. In this strategy, engine is
constrained to operate in its efficient region as illustrated in
Fig. 2. The engine is controlled as no surplus energy remains to
charge the battery to prevent charging and discharging waste.
When required torque is higher than top torque boundary, and
the engine is controlled to operate on this boundary so that the
remaining demand power is supplied by electric motor. The
engine solely propels the wheel if demanded torque is between
the boundaries. Engine bellow the bottom torque boundary
turns off and the vehicle runs in pure electric mode.
In [16], four different control strategies were simulated and
compared for a series-parallel PHEV with 16 km AER battery
pack in PSAT for a vehicle with similar performances with
Freyermuth et al. model in [8]:
1. Electric Vehicle/ Charge Sustaining (EV/CS)
2. Differential Engine Power
3. Full Engine Power
4. Optimal Engine Power
In EV/CS mode, engine only turns on when the power
demand is higher than available power of battery. Differential
Engine Power is similar to EV/CS but the engine-turn-on
threshold is lower than maximum power of electrical system.
In Full Engine Power, if the engine turns on it will supply all
the power demand of the drive cycle and no power will drain
from battery. The aim of this strategy is to force the engine to
operate in higher power demand and consequently in higher
efficiency. Optimal Engine Power Strategy similar to previous
strategy seeks to propel the engine more efficiently in higher
power by restricting the engine operation close to peak
efficiency. Engine-start threshold can be derived from
simulation for different predetermined journey distances.