AN107

Airpax Dimensions, Inc. 4467 White Bear Parkway St. Paul, MN 55110-7626 (651) 653-7000 Fax (651) 653-7600

APPLICATION NOTE SERIES

NOVEMBER 2006

Sizing the Alternator System

Introduction: The electrical power requirement for today's mobility is steadily increasing. Whether the vehicle is a city bus, a utility truck, a recreation vehicle, a boat, freight truck or emergency vehicle, the demand for electrical power must be met. The provider of electrical energy to fill the power needs of the vehicle DC system is the belt driven alternator. The alternator must first provide the starting, lighting, and ignition requirements. The battery starts the vehicle engine, but once started, the alternator must replenish the battery and power all other system demands. Adding a DC to AC power inverter will increase this demand. Auxiliary batteries are added to the system to support the inverter and these batteries must be maintained by an alternator system sized to continuously support the total demand. For utility vehicles, this can be a tall order because the engine is operating near idle while underhood temperature is high. With these conditions in a typical application the vehicle DC system can be called on to deliver from 2000 to 8000 Watts. Throughout our discussion we will keep an eye on the codes, standards and recommended practices provided by the: Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Federal Specification for Ambulances KKK-A-1822C DC System Requirements: 1. Engine/Vehicle A utility type work truck can demand from 500 to 800 Watts to keep just the engine running and vehicle accessories such as lighting and heating/cooling powered. 2. Power Inverter In most cases the power inverter will require more than the alternator can deliver. However, the duty cycle is usually such that the alternator has time to top off the batteries. The auxiliary battery pack must be sized to deliver the extra power when the alternator cannot keep up. In some cases the power demand is large and long term. Alternators: 1. Ratings- See Table 1 There are four primary factors that affect the energy available from an alternator: 1) Case Size- Small, Large, Heavy Duty 2) Temperature- 770 F to 2000 F 3) Speed of Rotation- 3,000 to 10,000 RPM 4) Belt Drive Integrity (See Discussion) Manufacturers may show two Amp ratings for a given alternator; the SAE rating which is at the standard temperature of 770F and the KKK rating which is at 2000F. (See Discussion on page 2.) Both these ratings will be at a high RPM for a maximum output rating.

2006 Airpax Dimensions, Inc.

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2. Federal Specification Ambulance KKK-A-1822 Within this standard, at section 3.7- System and Components, a valuable guide to alternator specification calls for an alternator that must deliver a minimum of 135 Amperes at 14 Volts with an underhood temperature of 2000 F. Further, the engine RPM is specified to not exceed 40% of the engines SAE net HP/RPM rating. For a typical gasoline engine, the SAE horsepower rating is given at about 4000 RPM. 40% of 4000 RPM would allow a maximum idle of 1600 RPM. Given a pulley ratio of 2.5 to 1.0, the alternator would be turning at 4000 RPM. So, at this RPM and at a temperature of 2000 F, the alternator must put out 135 Amperes minimum at 14 Volts DC. This is called the HOT OPERATIONAL SPEED RATING. See Chart on Page 3. 3. The Twin Alternator System Two alternators can be connected in parallel to increase system power. Although in parallel, the alternators can be thought of as individual contributors. The vehicle OEM alternator will be the main contributor to both the engine cranking and the auxiliary battery. The second alternator can have its voltage set slightly lower. As more and more system power is demanded by the power inverter, this alternator will add its capacity to system power. 4. Belt Drive Considerations The belt drive system has a dramatic effect on alternator performance. As shown in Table 1,

several horsepower can be required to power the DC system. This power is transmitted via the belt system. Underhood temperature together with friction loss at the pulleys place a heavy burden on the flexible belt drive. It is suggested that a minimum of 100 degrees belt wrap on the pulleys together with a belt tensioner be used. A loose belt can render the DC system useless. The tensioner will help maintain a constant pressure as the belt experiences environmental changes and aging. 5. What Can We Expect from a Practical Alternator System? The large case alternator supplied with a typical utility truck is rated at about 135 Amperes. At a HOT OPERATIONAL SPEED RATING (See II.B.) we can expect a continuous output from this alternator of about 95 Amperes. 95 Amperes at 14 Volts equals 1330 Watts. Subtract the vehicle requirement of 500 to 800 Watts (see I.A.) and we are left with less than 1000 Watts to feed our inverter. By replacing the OEM alternator with a higher rated large case unit and, if necessary, adding a second unit, the vehicle DC system should meet our requirements. Mounting and belting twin alternator systems is more difficult, however this approach has proven successful. The alternative is to use a heavy duty alternator (See Table 1 below). Even though large and expensive, heavy duty alternators are used in bus, fire engine, and large industrial vehicles.

Alternator Specification Alternator Size Small Large Heavy Duty Case Diameter ~ 5.0" ~ 6.6" ~ 8.6" Table 1
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Power Out Watts up to 2000 up to 4000 up to 7000

H.P. (50% eff.) up to 5.0 up to 10.0 up to 19.0

Wiring Installation: Two fuses and fuse blocks must be used. The inverter fuse protects the wires from inverter batteries) to inverter while the charging system fuse protects the wires going to the alternator and vehicle batteries). These fuses must not be installed in the battery compartment because if one should blow, it could ignite hydrogen gas which is always evolving from a vented lead-acid battery. Mount them in a convenient place near the inverter and label the fuse rating adjacent to its block. See AN102 or AN103 for inverter conductor size selection and Table 2 of this note for charging system conductor size selections. See AN104 for a complete installation guide. A Word About Battery State-Of-Charge: For most power inverter installations, the batteries have to "fill the gap"; that is, deliver the difference in energy of that provided by the vehicle alternator and that demanded by the power inverter. For some applications and increasingly so, the battery is losing ground. When the work truck is returned to the motor pool, the auxiliary battery may only be at an 80% state-of-charge. This is typical and reduces battery life. For maximum system performance and life, the batteries should be topped off at least once per week. The nature of the lead-acid battery is such that the last 20% charge must be replaced at a low rate. This may take several hours with less than 1000 Watts to feed our inverter. By replacing the OEM alternator with a higher rated large case unit and, if necessary, adding a second unit, the vehicle DC system should meet our requirements. Mounting and belting twin alternator systems is more difficult, however this approach has proven successful. The alternative is to use a heavy duty alternator (See Table 1). Even though large and expensive, heavy duty alternators are used in bus, fire engine, and large industrial vehicles.

Chart 1

Fuse Sizing for Conductors Under 50 Volts Conductor Size 8 6 4 2 1 1/0 2/0 3/0 4/0 Table 2 Fuse Amps 80 100 150 200 225 250 300 350 400

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Figure 1

ALTERNATOR WIRES ENGINE BATTERY(S)

FUSE BLOCKS INVERTER WIRES

FUSE BLOCK

VEHICLE DC SYSTEM ALTERNATOR INVERTER INVERTER BATTERY(S)

INVERTER COMPARTMENT

BATTERY COMPARTMENT

FUSE BLOCK DETAIL

LOOM-300 F

BUSHINGS

STRAPS

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