Operation of EVs in hot climates: Modeling of temperature-driven energy consumption including Li-ion battery energy loss

With the increasing adoption of electric bus fleets (E-fleets) in public transportation, accurate energy consumption prediction has become crucial due to the uncertainty and variability in daily operations, especially in harsh climates. Therefore, this article presents a novel multi-aspect and detailed energy consumption model of E-buses, emphasizing Li-ion battery energy loss and air conditioning energy consumption. This work introduces a new model to describe the E-bus performance in climates where Li-ion batteries suffer significant temperature-driven degradation. The proposed model considers the short- and long-term impacts of battery energy loss on total consumption. A Traffic-Route Index (TRI) is integrated to account for diverse driving and traffic scenarios. Simulation results demonstrate that battery temperature-driven degradation significantly increases total energy loss, with battery-related losses contributing up to 12 % of total energy consumption in high ambient temperatures. The model’s predictions closely align with real-world data, showing a 1.5 % deviation from measured energy consumption values. Furthermore, HVAC energy consumption accounts for approximately 24 % of the total energy demand at extreme temperatures. The findings confirm the importance of integrating thermal effects into energy modeling and validate the model’s applicability across different EV types. This study provides a robust tool for optimizing energy efficiency under various operating and environmental conditions, offering critical insights for the effective deployment and management of E-fleets in harsh climates. • Developing an E-bus energy model analyzing HVAC losses and their impact on overall consumption. • Introducing temperature-driven battery losses, considering short- and long-term effects of hot climates on Li-ion performance. • Incorporating the Traffic-Route Index to enhance energy predictions under varying temperatures and traffic conditions. • Investigating hot climate effects on E-bus energy use, integrating HVAC, route-traffic, and battery losses into efficiency analysis. • Demonstrating the model using a 12m public E-bus and light EVs under different traffic and ambient conditions.