Schaeffler: Combustion engines remain, hybrids provide savings potential

Schaeffler: Combustion engines remain, hybrids provide savings potential

The world of mobility is changing. In order to achieve the two-degree target of the Paris Climate Conference, a mix of purely electric, hybridized and environmentally friendly internal combustion engine drives is essential. Schaeffler predicts that the combustion engine will continue to play a key role in the future. Around 70 percent of the vehicles built in 2030 will still be equipped with combustion engines - 30 percent as pure combustion engines, 40 percent as hybrids. The gradual further development of conventional drives is therefore essential. “With our solutions shown at the IAA, consumption savings of up to 15 percent can be achieved, depending on the engine or vehicle class,” says Matthias Zink, Board Member for Automotive OEM at Schaeffler. “We offer our customers many levers with which they can meet the strict legal requirements and reduce CO₂-Emissions can also be further reduced in real operation.”

Variability in the valve train

Schaeffler is showing the latest version of its fully variable valve control system UniAir for the first time at the IAA. The system is more compact and 30 percent lighter than the previous version. It enables comprehensive optimization of the air path in the engine as well as maximum dynamics when changing load and speed. The system consists of a module that is installed between the camshaft and valve stem and the associated software. As a partner for the automotive industry, Schaeffler uses its extensive thermodynamic know-how to support its customers in optimally adapting the system to the respective engine and in selecting operating strategies.

The eRocker solution from Schaeffler can be used on the exhaust side. Due to the electromechanical actuation, the system is independent of the engine's oil circuit and can also be applied comparatively easily.

Schaeffler is showing another highlight with the electrically operated camshaft adjuster (Electric Cam Phasing, ECP). The speed- and temperature-independent quick adjustment allows the valve control times to be optimally adjusted across the entire operating and temperature range, which is increasingly playing a major role in hybridization. In a hybrid vehicle, the combustion engine is started many times more often than in a conventional combustion engine. The electrically operated camshaft adjuster ensures that this starting process is quick, efficient and, above all, with little vibration.

48V hybridization

Hybridization relieves and supports the combustion engine and, together with the recuperation of braking energy, ensures better overall efficiency of the system. At the IAA, Schaeffler will be showing, among other things, 48-V hybridization using a belt starter generator, which enables a significant reduction in fuel consumption and emissions of five to seven percent. Such a solution enables comfortable and efficient start-stop operation of the engine and can also be designed for boost operation.