Hybrid milk truck: Major improvements in milk collection
In France, as in other European countries, the dairy sector is going through a major restructuring and must constantly improve its productivity to be more competitive. This search for efficiency has led to tanker trucks with a capacity of up to 29,500 litres collecting milk on various farms and delivering it on the same day. These trucks are equipped with a hydraulic pumping system, traditionally driven by the vehicle’s engine. To optimise and improve milk collection, the Maisonneuve Group now equips its tanker vehicles with battery-operated electric pumps capable of running when the engine is off.
Your benefits
- The Mastervolt Lithium Ion battery can easily deliver the requested 200 A of pumping power.
- The Mastervolt Lithium Ion battery receives large currents from the truck alternator so that it is quickly charged while driving from one dairy farmer to the next.
- The ChargeMaster AC charger can charge the Lithium Ion battery safely overnight thanks to the direct MasterBus communication between the battery and the charger. This allows the milk truck to start working early in the morning with a full battery and a reliable system.
- The MasterBus ModBus Interface makes it easy to send important data to the dairy drivers’ PLC system so that they can accurately monitor it.
Customer comment
“The collection of milk on the farms is done without use of the engine of the milk collecting truck. The hydraulic pump is driven by the power system. This means less noise, less emissions and less maintenance. The power system is respectful to the environment and the humans and livestock of the dairy farms while working at the same capacity. We operate with a Mastervolt Lithium Ion battery, long-term energy, electric recharge or a tractor. It is a simple, reliable and efficient system with a touch screen that manages the pumping operations with a remote control.”
Patrice Halais, sales manager for Milk Logistics
Maisonneuve Group, France
The system
The MLI Ultra 24/5000 Lithium Ion battery provides at least 2000 cycles at a discharge depth of 80 %. A very stable voltage prevents loss of power in the pump, improving performance by 10 %. In addition, the Mastervolt Lithium Ion batteries are lighter than lead batteries, increasing the payload of the tank, and their integrated electronic management (BMS) ensures a perfect operation safety. To date, more than 150 of Maisonneuve’s vehicles are equipped with a Mastervolt electrical system.
System drawing
Products used
- 1x MLI Ultra 24/5000
- 1x ChargeMaster Plus 24/60-3
- 1x Charge Mate Pro 90
- 1x safety relay
- 1x MasterBus Modbus Interface
- 1x Multipurpose Contact Output
- 1x fuse holder with Class T fuses
- 2x fuse holder with ANL fuses
The engineers choice
The ChargeMaster Plus 24/60-3 is the versatile all-in-one solution for faster and safer charging. It provides full power charging up to 40 °C and is highly compact, lightweight and easy to connect and install. It provides a power boost functionality for faster charging and has a smart combined DC input and output channel to reduce the number of system components.
