The performance of modern, new generation-armored vehicles would greatly benefit from overall engineering, optimization, and integration techniques of advanced diesel engines-electrified transmissions. Modern axial flux electric motors and controllers are perfectly able to replace the classical automatic gearbox and complex steering system of traditional Main Battle Tanks. This study shows a possible design of a serial hybrid electric power pack for very heavy tanks with a weight well over 50 tons. The result is a hybrid power system that improves the overall performance of armored vehicles off-road and on-road, improving the acceleration and the smoothness of the ride. In addition, fuel consumption will be reduced because the internal combustion engine operates at fixed rpm. The electric motors will outperform the traditional engines due to their very high torque output even at “zero speed”. The weight of a hybrid system has also been calculated. In fact, in many cases, it is possible to use all off-the-shelf components. The on-board diagnosis of the subsystems in the hybrid powertrain makes it possible to achieve a Time Between Overhaul (TBO) of 4500 h with a failure probability inferior to one in 10,000.

Aluminium alloys are used extensively, whenever the advantages of high strength-to-density ratio, reduction of dead weight and corrosion resistance, make these alloys competitive with other materials. The major markets for structural application of aluminium alloys are civil engineering and the transport industry, in particular, aircraft construction and more recently, that of electric and low emission cars. One of the difficulties to be overcome in using aluminium alloys is the reduction of mechanical properties due to HAZ (Heat Affected Zone) deterioration caused by welding. The mechanical and microstructural characteristics of MIG welded joints in 6082-T6 plate alloy were investigated by means of tensile tests, fatigue bending tests, microhardness analysis, and optical and SEM metallography. The reduced hardness and tensile strength in the HAZ have been linked to the mechanisms of deterioration of constituents initially present in the alloy, originating from quenching and thermal ageing treatment.