Advantages of using hybrid vehicles based on empirical studies on the chassis dynamometer in the WLTC test

Vehicles powered in alternative ways have an increasing share in the car market. Their use is becoming more and more justified considering the ever more stringent standards for the emission of harmful substances from the exhaust systems of internal combustion engines and the introduction of restrictions on vehicle traffic in city centres. The possibility of using in the propulsion systems only an electric motor or its simultaneous use with the internal combustion engine enables a significant reduction of emission of harmful exhaust gas pollutants. This applies in particular to urban areas, where there are numerous exceedances of acceptable air quality standards. This problem is most noticeable in larger cities in Poland, where there is a lot of traffic. It is therefore legitimate to promote alternative vehicles powered in alternative ways. Their dual power system gives the opportunity to significantly reduce the emission of harmful substances. Therefore, the article presents own research, carried out on a chassis dynamometer, using two passenger cars, one with a spark-ignition combustion engine and the second with a hybrid drive system containing a spark-ignition engine and an electric motor (system without the possibility of recharging batteries from external sources). Vehicles were characterized by similar mass and the same displacement volumes of internal combustion engines. The results of the tests made it possible to compare cars in terms of exhaust emissions. For testing purposes, a chassis dynamometer was used, on which the WLTC homologation cycle was repeatedly reproduced. This is a new driving cycle, which replaces the NEDC cycle used so far in the type approval procedure in the European Union.