Alke' - Electric Utility Vehicles - alke

There are different type of electric engines, Alkè electric vehicles use a special last generation engine with separate excitation, with a power of 6kW and peak of 17.5kW (20kW for the ATX 280E). This electric engine during normal operation receives electricity from batteries. During braking operation the same engine works as a dynamo and generates energy that, instead of being wasted in heat from brakes, is sent to the drive batteries. This make possible for the electric vehicle to get lower average consumption and consequently higher autonomy. Different studies have been made by universities to understand which is the real benefit of this innovation and it is estimated that you can get a saving of about 30%. This value is reached especially in work situations of stop and go type, typical of maintenace works.

To explain better how the brake energy recovery works we make a practical example:

Comparison between waste collection with electric vehicles with energy recovery and diesel/petrol vehicles

If we use a petrol or diesel vehicle for waste collection we have a series of waste:

• the vehicle consume and pollute even when it is stationary during the load of waste.
• at each stop (about every twenty metres) the vehicle brakes and loses energy besides having a high brake wear.
• the traditional vehicle at the start isn't in torque so the engine haven't a good energy efficiency.

If we use an electric vehicle with energy recovery:

• the stationary electric vehicle doesn't consume and doesn't pollute.
• during the brakes recovers most of the energy so it recharges the batteries.
• during the start, the ALKE' electric engine has maximum torque at zero rpm then it has also the maximum efficiency.

In such situations you can then reach a saving of about 30% with the brake energy recovery increasing in proportion the batteries autonomy.