In the program technology failures by the dozens on materials combustion aerodynamics

In dismissing one third of CO2 emissions, road transport is the main European contributor to global warming. To curb its impact, the Commission imposed a limit of the average emissions of 120 g/km vehicles in 2012 and then to 95 g/km of here to 2020. By 2025, the Commission has started to floor a new decline set to 70 g! It is later today: the European Park barely pass under the bar of the 170 g/km and the average of the new vehicles put into circulation on the continent is 146 g/km.

Electric Diesel Gasoline Hybrid "No certainty on the engine that will win the race," said economist Benjamin Dessus, who chairs the association of scientists green "Global Chance". "Electric vehicle emissions depend on for example of the strategy of its batteries load, he explains." As long as the Park will be limited to captive fleets which are perfectly predictable, recharge at night at low CO2 content is likely to impose. But if the use is spreading in the general public, as provided in the Government with a goal of 2 million electric vehicles by 2025, it is likely that a portion of users will be brought to the full of electricity in the day. These rapid refill will call the order of 40 kW power, ten times more greedy than if they were carried out at night. "Effect on polluting emissions: If only 1 motorist 20 takes advantage of the lunch break to recharge his vehicle, the total power called" flash"brutally will be of the order of 2.5 GW. "Only the thermal power plants in the coal or the import of electricity more loaded in CO2 that HABs nuclear energy will address this overload", think Benjamin Dessus.

The disadvantaged Diesel engine

To the strengthening of standards, the Diesel engine also presents serious handicaps. Next January, particulate emissions rate accepted will be divided by five, requiring manufacturers to install filter devices or "stop & go" expensive. Four years later, it will be the turn of the emissions of nitrogen oxide to be reduced to the level of gasoline engines. Will gasoline engines benefit "It is certain," said Patrick Coroller, in view of the hundreds of millions of euros spent on research to improve their performance. In the program, technology failures by the dozens on materials, combustion, aerodynamics. "The master word is"down sizing": to make smaller, lighter, but also powerful", explains the expert of the Ademe.

Fiat opened the ball by providing research budget EUR 350 million to 200 engineers to design what they claim to be "the engine's own essence of the world": only 95 g of CO2 per km (92 in box auto version) to 4.1 l / 100 km. The secret of this Twin Air engine offered on the Fiat 500: regulation of dietary technology oxygen to fine-tune the supply of fuel in the House explosion, and the use of a motor bi-cylindre 875 cm3dopé by a turbo to reach higher than the 1.2 l petrol engine performance.

The hybrid is improved

Not sure that hybrid engine can compete in this field, even if complex solutions already allow 6 to 8 combined cycle fuel savings by stopping the engine at stops, recovering energy to braking as proposed model Honda Insight (101 g / km of CO2) or by switching to an all electric mode for short distances as well as on the 2010 Toyota Prius model (89 g / km).

"Hybridization in development solutions will provide other features such as the recharge of the batteries on the network," explains François Badin, expert Director hybrid vehicles for the Institut Carnot IFP engine. Electrical autonomy of these vehicles can reach 60 km, which will allow to use mode zero emission on all routes in urban areas.