Have you ever noticed how dirty the front wheels of vehicles are? Do you know why? Brake dust!

The wear of brake pads and disks is a ubiquitous source of secondary emissions in all urban centers around the world!

Reducing secondary emissions in the automotive sector is a critical step towards a sustainable future, as it helps to protect public health and the environment. Brake pollution is the leading source of secondary emissions, and it contributes to particulate emissions that are harmful to human health causing respiratory problems and increase the risk of heart disease. Therefore, it is essential to implement innovative solutions to reduce brake pollution and particulate emissions, especially as the use of electric vehicles becomes more widespread. This need is expressed by the newest regulation proposals, such as the Euro 7, that will consider brake emissions as part of automotive targets.

One technology that reduces brake pollution in electric vehicles is regenerative braking. This feature reduces brake wear and tear by minimizing the need for conventional braking, leading to a significant reduction in particulate emissions. The regenerative braking solution is, however, limited, since it is not able to completely eliminate braking action (in emergency conditions, or when the batteries are at full SOC).

Partial solutions can be the use of low-emission brake pads, which emit fewer particles and toxic chemicals during braking; or the use of advanced driver assistance systems that utilize artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms to optimize braking performance, reducing the need for hard braking and decreasing particulate emissions. Nonetheless, this kind of technology only partially mitigate the problem.

Reducing secondary emissions in the automotive sector, especially brake pollution and particulate emissions, is crucial for a sustainable future. Through solutions such as regenerative braking, low-emission brake pads, and advanced driving assistance systems can reduce the impact of secondary emissions on public health and the environment, but not completely solve the problem. Thus, it is clear that a "real" zero-emissions solution must be proposed to tackle the problem, and our team found it: Its name is ZEDS!

The Zero-Emission Driving System combines in-wheel electric motors with an innovative braking system, based on a magneto-rheological fluid actuation. By suitably generating a magnetic field, ZEDS is able to change the physical characteristics of the MR fluid and generate sufficient braking torque even in emergency conditions.

ZEDS does not rely on pad-disk friction, so no wear is generated, completely eliminating all source of secondary emissions. Apart from the environmental goal, the integration between an electrically actuated brake and an electric motor grants ZEDS other advantages such as a faster response time, easily controllable system for active stability actuation, and a maintanance-free braking solution. All parts and materials used in the ZEDS construction are recyclable and fit to the automotive applications, making it a strong candidate for the braking systems of tomorrow!

Help us by voting and promoting ZEDS and making this technology one step closer to the future of e-mobility!