Use of Aerodynamic Lift in Increasing the Fuel Efficiency of Heavy Vehicles

TLDR: In this paper, a 3D model of one medium duty vehicle is modelled using SOLIDWORKS and 3D external flow analysis is performed using ANSYS FLUENT, with and without the addition of the wings.

Abstract: The ever increasing fuel costs and automobile emissions have called for attention of the automotive fuel economy and the climatic changes evidenced nowadays. The use of alternative materials such as aluminum, magnesium and polymer matrix composites (PMCs) instead of steel is sought to reduce weight of the vehicle, but they face technical and economic hurdles which limit the possible elaborate advancements in such light- weight materials. The concept of reducing the resultant downward force by using aerodynamic lift is being studied in the present work. This lift is induced by a series of wings attached on the top of the vehicle. To validate the proposed method 3D model of one medium duty vehicle is modelled using SOLIDWORKS. 3D external flow analysis is performed using ANSYS FLUENT, with and without the addition of the wings. The results of Lift and Drag are compared from the two setups. The values of lift are converted to virtual weight reduced and the reduction in fuel consumption is calculated. The results show that there is a considerable reduction in fuel consumption for these vehicles. Further research on the aerofoil profiles which can generate more lift and reduce drag will help reduce the fuel consumption even further.