| The driveline architectures for hybrid and electric vehicles are significantly different from conventional manual or automatic transmissions and axles. PowerSplit transmissions are widely used in hybrid applications where two electric motors (one as a starter generator and the other as a traction device to power the wheels) are inside the transmission housing. The electric motors are cooled by dripping transmission fluid on copper windings. Current automatic transmission fluid is used in PowerSplit transmission, which is not optimized for this application. The next generation transmission fluid should be an optimized formulation for this application where the fluid should perform as a lubricant as well as an effective motor coolant. The same concept applies to e-axles/e-transaxle for battery electric vehicle. The fluid should have high thermal conductivity and specific heat, enabling faster heat removal from copper windings. The fluid should also be compatible with various materials used in electric motors. This course will discuss various performance requirements on next-generation driveline lubricants. |