Mack Trucks, one of North America’s largest producers of heavy duty trucks, is demonstrating a zero-emission capable Class 8 drayage truck.
The vehicle is a part a California-based heavy duty truck development project being led by the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) and funded by a $23.6 million grant from the State of California.
SCAQMD is partnering with four separate air quality districts in California to work toward the first large-scale demonstration of zero-emission heavy duty trucks with the intention of reducing pollution and greenhouse gas emissions at locations with heavy freight volumes, including ports, rail yards and the freight corridors connecting them.
As one of the truck manufacturers selected to receive funding, the Mack will focus on ultra-low NOx technologies, while advancing plug-in hybrid and geo-fencing capabilities explored in previous and ongoing projects.
The Mack drayage truck, built as part of an earlier SCAQMD-sponsored project, is capable of zero-emission operation thanks to the integration of a Mack MP7 diesel engine with a parallel hybrid system and lithium-ion battery pack.
Additional lightweight and aerodynamic-enhancing components were included to extend the benefits of the hybrid technology and maximize zero-emission range.
Inside the fence
The truck utilizes geofencing capabilities, similar to those enabled by Mack’s GuardDog Connect telematics platform, to switch between zero-emission and hybrid operating modes.
Geofencing establishes a virtual perimeter as determined by GPS coordinates. The onboard hardware can then identify each time the truck passes through the perimeter.
When inside the zero-emission geofence – which includes locations with the heaviest freight traffic, such as a port – the truck operates in pure electric mode. When outside the zero-emission geofence – such as on the way to a rail yard or distribution center – the diesel engine is enabled, allowing for hybrid operation and recharging of the batteries.
The truck is currently undergoing evaluation and testing in a drayage fleet at the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles.
