Ankit Mishra | ME/2K14/26 |

Regenerative
Braking System
LITERATURE REVIEW

Regenerative Braking : The concept

When a conventional vehicle applies its brakes, kinetic energy is converted to heat as
friction between the brake pads and wheels. This heat is carries away in the
airstream and the energy is effectively wasted .The total amount of energy lost in this
way depends on how often, how hard and for how long the brakes are applied.
Regenerative brake is an energy recovery mechanism which slows a vehicle by
converting its kinetic energy into another form, which can be either used immediately
or stored until needed. The scope for regenerative braking comes from the fact that
in the city drive, almost 65% of the total energy is wasted during the braking.
Regenerative braking utilizes the fact that an electric motor can also act as a
generator. The vehicle's electric traction motor is reconnected as a generator during
braking and its output is connected to an electrical load. It is this load on the motor
that provides the braking. An early example of this system was the Energy
Regeneration Brake, developed in 1967 for the Amitron.
During braking, the traction motor connections are altered to turn them into electrical
generators. The motor fields are connected across the main traction generator (MG)
and the motor armatures are connected across the load. The MG now excites the
motor fields. The rolling locomotive or multiple unit wheels turn the motor armatures,
and the motors act as generators, either sending the generated current through
onboard resistors (dynamic braking) or back into the supply (regenerative braking)
For a given direction of travel, current flow through the motor armatures during
braking will be opposite to that during motoring. Therefore, the motor exerts torque
in a direction that is opposite from the rolling direction. Braking effort is proportional
to the product of the magnetic strength of the field windings, times that of the
armature windings.

There are different types of ways in which the regenerative braking can be used in a
vehicle, essentially different in the way the energy is stored. Usually, the energy is
stored in an electrochemical cell, or capacitor, or flywheel and sometimes in
compressed air. The different types of regenerative braking are Electric, Hydraulic
braking, Using flywheel, compressed air, Nitilon spring. The Regenerative Braking
helps us to store the energy that is usually lost to the environment, but it is not a
perpetual machine, and hence, we cannot use all the energy that is being lost.
Various techniques are being used to increase the efficiency of these brakes, by using
different type of processes by which the energy is saved. Usually, regenerative
braking helps us to save around 8-25% of energy. With the use of some other
techniques, this can be increased to 40% and even above.

NEW TECHNIQUES BEING USED

With time, the use of advanced materials like the piezoelectric material has been
tested and the results show that Using Piezoelectric materials and Permanent
magnets, it is possible to save energy to higher percentages. The use of such
materials give a strong future to this regenerative Braking.

PAGE 1

The widest use of regenerative braking is in the Metropolitan rail system. Even Delhi
Metro uses the regenerative braking so as to reduce the wastage of energy, as well
as proper distribution of power and smooth distribution. With synchronized
timetables, the energy can efficiently be used. Apart from saving the energy in the
automobile, the energy is also saved in power banks stationed with the rail lines and
hence, can be used by any locomotive, irrespective of which has saved the energy.
The rails use on-board energy system and stationary energy systems. This saved
energy helps the corporation to use in accelerating the loco, when there is a need to
accelerate number of vehicles, thus helping the proper use of energy distribution.
ADVANTAGES OF REGENERATIVE BRAKING
1. Exhaust emissions were reduced by about 35 per cent (Such emissions
include nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, total hydrocarbons
and particulates.)
2. Cost of engine maintenance was reduced by at least 50 per cent because
there was less wear on the brakes and tires and less lubricating oil was
needed.
3. Environment friendly.
4. Noise level was lower by 30 per cent.

PAGE 2