Equipment World Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/860257
August 2017 | EquipmentWorld.com 68 A fter six months of testing at two Waste Management (WM) facilities in California, Volvo Construction Equipment says its electric hybrid LX1 prototype loader achieved up to 50-percent fuel effi ciency improvement over a comparison machine, well exceeding the 35-percent goal it set for the project. The LX1, unveiled at Volvo CE's Xploration Forum last fall, underwent head-to-head testing with a conventional Volvo L150 loader powered by a 13-liter engine. In comparison, the LX1 uses a signifi cantly smaller 3.6-liter diesel and is designed as a "series hybrid" machine – meaning in part that the engine drives the electric motors mounted at the wheels instead of directly driving the wheels. Since the electric motors are on the LX1's wheel hubs, Volvo could change the frame, eliminating the axles and moving the bucket closer to the center of the machine. "This allows us to lift more with a physically smaller machine," says Scott Young, Volvo CE's electromobility director. Additional energy storage led to a reduction in engine size, and now small electric motors propel the machine's hydraulic system. "With the LX1, we're bringing 'Star Wars' technology to construction equipment," says John Meese, WM's senior director of heavy equipment, who partnered with Volvo on the project. Whatever Rhonda wants… Rhonda Lepori, WM operator, took on the real-world operation of the LX1 at Redwood during an unusually rainy winter and spring. She was paired with Mikael Skantz, Volvo CE test engineer. With Lepori's input and Skantz's engineering expertise, the LX1 went through a series of adjustments. Some loaders have power train modes; the LX1 has a "Rhonda" mode. "If Rhonda needed something changed, we could go into the software and make adjustments," Young says. For instance, Lepori initially found the LX1 lacking when the loader was pushing and lifting, with the lighter weight of the machine – compared to the L150 – being a factor. "They adjusted lift speeds, back-out speeds to how I run it," she says. "It was slow in the hydraulics and jumped out of a pile, but they made it smooth. For moving things, the hybrid is a lot faster. You just have to work it differently." Operators used to the familiar diesel rumble might fi nd travel in the LX1 eerily quiet. The whine of the electric motors is most noticeable during bucket lift, load and dump. The throttle is used instead of braking, reducing foot movement. "It's so quiet you don't have to wear earplugs," Lepori says. There is, however, a potential downside to the quiet. "I go around a lot of piles that are blind, and so I had to be careful that people could hear me." At the Redwood site, Lepori typically moved material between stockpiles. The active charging software in the machine detected work patterns and anticipated power technology | by Marcia Gruver Doyle | MGruver@randallreilly.com LX1 hybrid prototype tests achieve up to 50% fuel effi ciency improvement over Volvo L150