The road to zero emissions: Introduction to Mercedes-Benz new energy technology

What happens when oil runs out? Have you ever thought about this question? You should know that when you read this article, the number of cars in the world is approaching the 1 billion mark. Such a large group of people consume gasoline and diesel every day, and it is very likely that you are one of them. For non-renewable resources, this almost unscrupulous consumption is obviously very dangerous. At this time, what should car manufacturers do?

That's right, the development of new energy technology. According to the current rate of oil consumption and the trend of continuous growth, pessimistic experts even predict that the global oil reserves are only enough for humans to toss for 50 years. So in order to save the cars that everyone loves, the development of new energy models has become a task that all major manufacturers attach great importance to. The editor recently attended the new energy technology media exchange meeting held by Mercedes-Benz. Experts from Germany introduced us to the latest achievements of Mercedes-Benz in this regard. Now I will take you to see what is worth paying attention to.

1. Mercedes-Benz’s new energy technology strategic planning

According to Mercedes-Benz's understanding, internal combustion engine vehicles will eventually be phased out and replaced by zero-emission new energy vehicles that are almost harmless to the environment. However, this will be a long process because technological innovation and development, the construction of related supporting facilities, and the follow-up of policies and regulations in various countries all take time.

So what did Mercedes-Benz do during this process? Simply put, they divided their new energy route into three aspects to develop simultaneously, and tried their best to provide consumers with diversified solutions before reaching the ultimate goal of "zero emission". Note the word I used - solution. What to solve? To solve such a problem: how to adhere to the brand attributes of "comfort, safety and luxury" without sacrificing the environment? At this stage, the answer given by Mercedes-Benz is: Blue Efficiency , Hybrid , Electric Drive .

2. What is Blue Efficiency?

Because of my preference for blue, I think this name sounds the best among the three routes. Technically, it is the easiest to achieve. In fact, models that use this technology - such as the 2010 E260 CGI and E200 CGI - have already been mass-produced.

There is a concept that should not be misunderstood here: Blue efficiency does not refer to a single technology, but a general term for a set of energy-saving and emission-reduction technology improvements. This includes a lot of content, such as small-displacement turbocharged engines, lightweight bodies, increased rear axle transmission ratios, low-friction gearboxes and tires, and optimized aerodynamic design. This set of improvements can reduce the fuel consumption of the entire vehicle by 12%-15%.

Representative models: E260 CGI, E-Class Coupe

The E260 CGI is equipped with a 1.8-liter engine. CGI is the abbreviation of Sratified-Charged Gasoline Injection, which means that this engine uses turbocharging and direct fuel injection technology. From the wording, it should also have stratified combustion, but it has not been used yet. Experts say that it will be available next year, which will increase the combustion efficiency by another 15%.

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In addition to the engine, the E260 CGI also has a series of technical improvements, including lightweight windshield, energy-saving steering pump control system, intelligent generator energy management and other details. Although each of them may not seem significant individually, when combined together they result in higher performance and lower consumption. The ancients taught us that a river is formed by the accumulation of small streams, and it seems that Mercedes-Benz also understands this truth.

The most impressive thing about the E-Class Coupe is its drag coefficient: only 0.24, which is quite low. How low is it? It is said to be the lowest among all mass-produced cars. I am not sure if it is really the lowest, but at least I am sure that its side streamline looks really "silky and smooth".

3. What is Hybrid?

I believe everyone is already familiar with the word hybrid. It is even a little abrupt to list it as a subheading, but for the sake of the structure of the article, let's bear with it. Mercedes-Benz's definition of hybrid mainly includes the following parts: lithium-ion battery, internal combustion engine, power control component, hybrid module, and seven-speed automatic transmission. It is worth noting that all hybrid modules are compatible with the seven-speed automatic transmission, thus achieving the purpose of energy saving. This is indeed a very thoughtful consideration for Mercedes-Benz, which has not yet launched a dual-clutch transmission.

The basic principle of Mercedes-Benz hybrid is this: when starting and accelerating, the electric motor provides power assistance to the internal combustion engine; when braking, the internal combustion engine has no fuel supply, and the electric motor recovers the braking energy into the battery; during normal driving, the electric motor is turned off and relies on the internal combustion engine for driving.

Representative model: S400 Hybrid

The S400 Hybrid was launched in China last year and can now be seen on the streets occasionally. This hybrid luxury car is equipped with a 3.5-liter naturally aspirated gasoline engine and a 15kW electric motor, and has a comprehensive fuel consumption of about 8 liters per 100 kilometers, which is a very good result for a large luxury car.

4. What is Electric Drive?

This is also easy to understand. The ultimate drive of the vehicle is achieved by electricity, but there are several ways to generate electricity. This leads to several different electric drive system structures of Mercedes-Benz, namely E-CELL, F-CELL, and E-CELL PLUS.

1. E-CELL

What does E-CELL mean? This is a system with the simplest structure, with only two core components: the electric motor and the high-voltage battery. In principle, this is the same structure as the electric bicycles you see on the street, that is, the electricity in the battery drives the motor, and the motor drives the wheels to rotate.

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Representative models: Electric version of smart fortwo, A-class E-CELL

The electric version of smart fortwo is equipped with a 30kW electric motor, and power is provided by a lithium-ion battery. It can be charged at home sockets and public charging stations, and it takes 6-7 hours to fully charge. Its full-charge range is about 135 kilometers. The first batch of product cars will be mass-produced in 2012, but there will be only 1,000 units. If nothing unexpected happens, they will not be available in China.

The peak torque of the A-class E-CELL is 290 Nm, the maximum power is 70 kW, and the full-charge range is about 200 kilometers. The good news is that it will be mass-produced this year, but the bad news is that only 500 units will be produced.

2. F-CELL

F-CELL is much more complicated. It introduces the high-tech product of fuel cells. Its core components are composed of four parts: electric motor, high-voltage battery, fuel cell system, and hydrogen tank. The general working principle is that the hydrogen tank is responsible for storing hydrogen fuel. After the hydrogen fuel enters the fuel cell system, it undergoes a series of complex and boring chemical changes to generate electricity, which is then stored in the high-voltage battery and then released to the electric motor to drive the car.

Representative model: B-class F-CELL

The B-class F-CELL is equipped with a 100kW electric motor with a peak torque of 290 Nm. Mercedes-Benz says it has a range of about 400 kilometers, provided the hydrogen tank is full. This brings up the issue of hydrogen refueling, because the manufacture, storage, transportation, and construction of hydrogen refueling stations are all very expensive projects, which is also one of the biggest obstacles to the popularization of F-CELL. Therefore, it is difficult for this type of vehicle to be put into mass production in the short term. The first batch of mass-produced B-class F-CELLs will have 200 units, which will be delivered to customers this year.

3. E-CELL PLUS

Now let's talk about E-CELL PLUS. The word "PLUS" means "plus, additional", and here it means that other parts are added to the E-CELL to increase the cruising range. What is added? Very simple: internal combustion engine. On the surface, this "internal combustion engine + electric system" model is exactly the same as Hybrid, right? Of course not! In the Hybrid system, the internal combustion engine is the protagonist, and the electric system is just a supporting role, occasionally helping the internal combustion engine and providing auxiliary power for the vehicle; but here the electric system is the absolute protagonist, driving the car is directly completed by it, and the job of the internal combustion engine is to charge the battery during driving.

Representative model: BlueZERO E-CELL PLUS

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BlueZERO E-CELL PLUS is a concept car that is close to mass production. The maximum power of the electric motor is 100kW and the peak torque is 320 Nm. Its lithium battery can be charged by plug-in and charged by a 1.0-liter turbocharged gasoline engine while driving.

5. F800 Style concept car

The reason why this car is introduced separately is that its technology is very special. The platform of F800 Style (hereinafter referred to as F800) can support two drive systems: it can be equipped with a plug-in hybrid system or an F-CELL hydrogen fuel cell drive system.

If you choose the plug-in hybrid, your car will have a 3.5-liter V6 gasoline internal combustion engine, a hybrid power module, a lithium-ion battery, a seven-speed automatic transmission, etc. The engine power is 220kW, plus the electric motor's 80kW, the total power reaches 300kW, the acceleration from 0 to 100 kilometers takes only 4.8 seconds, and the fuel consumption per 100 kilometers is only 2.9 liters, and the cruising range reaches 700 kilometers; if you choose the F-CELL model, you will get a hydrogen fuel cell, a hydrogen tank, a lithium-ion battery, an electric motor, etc., with a maximum power of 100kW, a peak torque of 290 Nm, and a cruising range of 600 kilometers. Obviously, the latter power configuration model is not born for the pursuit of performance, but for protecting the earth.

6. Lithium-ion battery

Careful readers will find that all the batteries used by Mercedes-Benz are lithium-ion batteries. Compared with the nickel-metal hydride batteries favored by Japanese manufacturers, Mercedes-Benz is obviously more optimistic about the former, because at the same capacity, it can provide three times the mileage with half the weight. Larger capacity, higher efficiency, smaller size, lighter weight, etc., the advantages can be described in parallel sentences. However, the principle of "you get what you pay for" will not change. Lithium-ion batteries are so good, of course they are also very expensive, but Mercedes-Benz still believes that lithium-ion batteries will be the mainstream of development and will spare no effort to promote them.

The cooperation with BYD is the best proof. Mercedes-Benz has taken a fancy to its advantages in this regard. BYD has world-leading battery research and development capabilities and sufficient domestic automobile market experience, while Mercedes-Benz has strong research and development capabilities in the field of electric transmission systems. The cooperation between the two parties will mainly focus on the field of battery research and development and the development of electric vehicles. This strong alliance will promote the rapid development of electric drive technology, and as consumers, we will ultimately benefit.

VII. Conclusion

From the cost point of view, from low to high, they are Blue Efficiency, Hybrid, E-CELL, and F-CELL. From a technical point of view, Blue Efficiency is the easiest to implement and promote at this stage. Mercedes-Benz has produced 58 Blue Efficiency models, and this number will be expanded to 85 this year. However, this energy-saving and emission-reduction transformation method is still not a fundamental strategy. Only by truly getting rid of fuel consumption can the automobile industry be considered a victory. From this perspective, E-CELL and F-CELL have more long-term significance.

If you don't think about the future, you will have immediate worries. This is also a very useful saying for car manufacturers, especially in this era when oil is becoming increasingly precious. Many years ago, internal combustion locomotives saved horse-drawn carriages. In the near future, new forms of technology will be needed to save today's internal combustion locomotives. Mercedes-Benz, as a century-old factory, has been making a lot of efforts in this regard, which everyone is happy to see. The Beijing Auto Show is about to open, and the theme of this auto show is related to new energy: Imagine a green future. Whether the future is green or not depends largely on the efforts made by today's car manufacturers. I hope that in the future, cars will no longer be synonymous with polluting the environment, and I hope that new energy models can be popularized in everyone's hearts as soon as possible.