Thermal Efficiency

In order to determine the fuel energy consumed, the mechanical energy used must
be divided by thermal efficiency of the engine-transmission. For example if the
transmission is 90% efficient and the engine converts 30% of the fuel energy int
o mechanical work, the efficiency is 0.9 x 0.3 = 0.27. Since mechanical work is
measured at the driving wheels, transmission energy losses must be included.
For electrically powered trains, one should not only consider the efficiency of
the electric motors on the train, but the energy loss in transmitting the electr
ic energy from the power plant to the train. Of course, the efficiency of the po
wer plant in converting fossil fuel energy into electricity must be counted too.
So what are typical values for such efficiency? It turns out that for both train
s and autos this efficiency is roughly 30% under the best conditions. This is al
so the case for electric trains. Thus if thermal efficiency is roughly the same,
the comparison of vehicle resistance will give a good indication of the fuel co
nsumption of different vehicles (under the best conditions).
But actual conditions are mostly far worse than the best. The actual thermal eff
iciency is often well below 30% and can even be zero. For example, if an auto is
going down a hill with the engine running at cruising rpm, but it could have al
so coasted down the hill at the same speed (in neutral gear with the engine shut
off), then all the power being put out by the engine is wasted. The car could h
ave descended the hill at the same speed with no fuel used at all. Under this co
ndition the engine is being operated at 0% efficiency. Even if the car is going
down the hill under engine power at a speed only slightly higher than the coasti
ng speed, the efficiency may only be a few percent.
Any motor that is operated at low torque (low power output for the speed it's tu
rning at) will have low efficiency. This is even true for electric motors poweri
ng trains at extremely low torque. At very high current (and torque) the efficie
ncy of electric motors drops also since ohmic losses are proportional to the squ
are of the the current. Although the efficiency of the electric motor alone is m
uch higher than that of an internal combustion engine (gasoline or diesel) an el
ectric motor that drops to say 60% efficiency will result in an overall efficien
cy of about 20% due to the losses in the generation and transmission of electric
ity.
For passenger trains, a significant amount of energy is used to air condition th
e cars (including electric heating on diesel trains). This energy cost was negle
cted in the above discussion but it can't be neglected in the final results. Aut
omobiles utilize waste engine heat to heat them which tends to make them more en
ergy efficient.