EXPERIMENTAL DEMONSTRATION OF A HIGH-POWER DENSITY ELECTRIC GENERATOR

Electric vehicles (EV) are an increasingly common alternative to gasoline vehicles. However, most have significantly shorter drivable ranges than IC vehicles and require a long waiting period to recharge. Further, the lack of robust charging networks severely limits the viability of EVs in certain regions of any country. Range extenders have been proven to be one of the most attractive options to address EVs' limited drivable range and range anxiety. Currently, the market for range extenders exists in two classes: a 50kW type, which can be heavy, bulky, and immovably fixed to the vehicle, or a 5kW type which can be too weak to provide any usable range to the EV in a reasonable amount of time. The goal of this work is to develop and showcase a high power density generator, which may be used as a range extender, constructed from commercially available components configured to be easily transportable while having the capacity to rapidly charge an EV battery. The device discussed in this work includes a two-stroke single-cylinder gasoline engine and a compact permanent magnet brushless dynamo as commonly found on hybrid vehicles that are capable of producing up to 15kW of power. The advantages of this combination include compactness, simplicity, lower weight, and lower thermal and mechanical loads. This paper discusses the design and experimental development of such a portable high-power-density power generator. The performance and emissions characteristic of the generator is investigated at varying loads and compared to currently available systems. During preliminary experiments, the power generator produced 8.8kW while having a dry weight of just 22kg. Future design recommendations for use of alternative/E-fuels are also explored.