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Written primarily for fleet management personnel with purchasing, maintenance, or operations responsibilities, Alternative Fuels: Emissions, Economics, and Performance provides essential information for those who are considering adding alternatively-fueled vehicles to their fleets. Readers will gain a solid understanding of the fundamentals of alternative fuels and the factors that need to be considered when evaluating their use. No prior knowledge of alternative fuels is necessary. Basic information on the various alternative fuels and objective data on the costs of converting, fueling, and operating alternatively-fueled vehicles is covered in this book. Fuel cost, performance, reliability, and availability are addressed. The book also discusses the 1990 amendments to the Clean Air Act and the 1992 Comprehensive National Energy Policy Act.

This paper describes the use of axiomatic design to create an academic program which targets the needs of the automotive industry-especially local industry. Creative and innovative engineers and technicians are needed to design, develop, and maintain the vehicles and transportation systems of the future. The design of a new program is presented using axiomatic design to establish multiple levels of customer needs, functional requirements (FRs), associated design parameters (DPs), and resulting design matrices (DMs) that clearly define the program. The curriculum for a two-year automotive technology program is enhanced by partnering with a four-year mechanical engineering program, local and national industries, and local secondary school programs. The paper also discusses potential complexities of the proposed program design and implementation and mitigation strategies.

Texas Tech University (TTU) was one of sixteen universities competing in EcoCAR:-The Next Challenge competition. It is a three year collegiate advanced vehicle technology competition where teams are challenged to re-engineer a General Motors(GM) donated vehicle to achieve improved fuel economy and reduced emissions while maintaining consumer acceptability in the areas of stock performance, utility and safety. Two-mode hybrid which is an electrically variable transmission was selected as the Texas Tech team's architecture. The first year of the competition emphasized vehicle design through Powertrain System Analysis Toolkit (PSAT) software. The vehicle design parameters were established through vehicle technical specifications(VTS), development of software-in-the-loop (SIL) and hardware in-the-loop (HIL) techniques, rapid control system prototyping and components selection and sizing.

Fuel cell powered vehicles have the potential of being the answer to vehicle emissions and dependence on fossil fuels. The hydrogen powered proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell is the fuel cell of choice for vehicle applications. It uses hydrogen and air to produce electricity with by products of water and heat. However, there are many issues that must be resolved to make fuel cell powered vehicles a viable alternative. One of the major issues involves all of the peripheral systems necessary for a fuel cell powered vehicle to actually function. Each system must operate under very controlled conditions. Conditions such as flow rates, temperatures, pressures, and humidity of the elements in the reaction process directly affect the performance of the fuel cell. Therefore it is necessary to meet operating specifications as closely as possible and to monitor the processes closely to counteract any change in operating conditions.

With shrinking energy reserves, and rising concerns for the environment, the need for clean-burning, fuel-efficient vehicles is greater than ever. The Texas Tech FutureCar project is part of a nationwide effort to develop the car of tomorrow. Texas Tech University has chosen to develop a hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) using a Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cell as its primary power source. The system includes on-board batteries for energy storage, as well as a 140kW (188hp) dual AC Induction Motor drive system. This paper discusses the design and implementation of the 1998 Texas Tech FutureCar.