Hydraulic hybrid excavator from Volvo CE

First published in CONEXPO-CON/AGG Preview News - January 27, 2020

Volvo CE’s hydraulic hybrid recirculates energy generated by the boom down motion to reduce fuel consumption

Volvo CE claims that its novel EC300E Hybrid excavator offers high efficiency and reliability. The basis is a simple process of recirculating energy from the boom down motion. This uses simple and proven hydraulic hybrid technology, rather than the more costly systems to recover electrical energy from the swing cycle used on some hybrid excavators.

The powerful boom-down motion charges 20litre capacity hydraulic accumulators, which then recirculate this energy to drive hydraulic assist motors and help to power the hydraulic pump. There are the same levels of controllability and performance as for the standard EC300E, including the ability to work in ECO Mode and Hybrid Mode simultaneously.

According to Volvo CE, this system allows fuel savings of up to 15% and 12% lower CO2 emissions than from a conventional machine. The package reduces the load on the engine, boosting its working life. When used in high production dig and dump applications, especially those within a 90° swing, the fuel saving payback is approximately two years but with no loss of performance. It is also comparatively simple to maintain and service and inexpensive as the system consists of just a few add-on components. At the moment, the package is not available as a retrofit for existing machines however.