The primary goal of the Advanced Vehicle Testing Activity (AVTA) is to benchmark and validate the performance of light-, medium-, and heavy-duty vehicles that feature one or more advanced technologies, including:
- Internal combustion engines burning advanced fuels, such as 100% hydrogen and hydrogen/compressed natural gas-blended fuels;
- Hybrid electric, pure electric, and hydraulic drive systems;
- Advanced batteries and engines; and
- Advanced climate control, power electronic, and other ancillary systems.
By benchmarking the performance and capabilities of advanced technologies, the AVTA supports the development of industry and DOE technology targets. The testing results are also leveraged as input to component, system, and vehicle models, as well as hardware-in-the-loop testing.
The AVTA develops vehicle test procedures with input from industry and other stakeholders to accurately measure real-world vehicle performance. These test procedures are then used to test production and preproduction advanced technology vehicles on dynamometers and closed test tracks as well as in government, commercial, and industry fleets. The AVTA tests produce unbiased information about vehicles with advanced transportation technologies, which reduces the U.S. dependence on foreign oil, while improving the nation's air quality.
The AVTA also produces information resources that support the decisions fleet managers and the public make when acquiring advanced technology vehicles. The testing results are presented in easy-to understand formats that allow users to compare the performance of different types of vehicles.
The AVTA is conducted jointly by Idaho National Laboratory and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
Contacts
James Francfort
Idaho National Laboratory
208-526-6787
james.francfort@inl.gov
Kevin Walkowicz
National Renewable Energy Laboratory
303-275-4492
kevin_walkowicz@nrel.gov