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Light duty vehicle emission standards are getting more stringent than ever before as stipulated by US EPA Tier 2 Standards and LEV III regulations proposed by CARB. The research in this paper sponsored by US DoE is focused towards developing a Tier 2 Bin 2 Emissions compliant light duty pickup truck with class leading fuel economy targets of 22.4 mpg “City” / 34.3 mpg “Highway”. Many advanced technologies comprising both engine and after-treatment systems are essential towards accomplishing this goal. The objective of this paper would be to discuss key engine technology enablers that will help in achieving the target emission levels and fuel economy. Several enabling technologies comprising air-handling, fuel system and base engine design requirements will be discussed in this paper highlighting both experimental and analytical evaluations.

With increasing energy prices and concerns about the environmental impact of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, a growing number of national governments are putting emphasis on improving the energy efficiency of the equipment employed throughout their transportation systems. Within the U.S. transportation sector, energy use in commercial vehicles has been increasing at a faster rate than that of automobiles. A 23% increase in fuel consumption for the U.S. heavy duty truck segment is expected from 2009 to 2020. The heavy duty vehicle oil consumption is projected to grow while light duty vehicle (LDV) fuel consumption will eventually experience a decrease. By 2050, the oil consumption rate by LDVs is anticipated to decrease below 2009 levels due to CAFE standards and biofuel use. In contrast, the heavy duty oil consumption rate is anticipated to double. The increasing trend in oil consumption for heavy trucks is linked to the vitality, security, and growth of the U.S. and global economies.

Evaluation of the platooning legislative space suggests a limited near-term opportunity for autonomous vehicles as currently only nine states have platooning and autonomous favorable legislations. An extensive closed-loop vehicle model simulation was conducted to quantify two-truck platooning fuel economy entitlement benefits across all United States (US) interstate routes (I-xx) spanning over 40,000 miles as compared to a single truck. A simultaneous study was carried out to identify the density of Class 8 heavy-duty trucks on these interstates, using the Freight Analysis Framework (FAF) 4 database. These two studies were combined to ascertain interstates that foresee the least fuel consumption due to platooning and thus identifying states with the most platooning benefits. Identification of states with most platooning benefits provides realistic data to push for autonomous driving and platooning legislations.

Improving engine efficiency and reducing the total cost of ownership demands engine friction loss reduction through optimal design, especially for large bore application considering the amount of fuel the engine consumes during its service life. Power cylinder is a big source for engine friction and piston accounts for about 25% to 47% of the power cylinder friction [1]. Thus the piston design needs to be optimized to minimize friction; and at the same time, not sacrificing the durability. This work focuses on piston friction reduction by utilizing shorter compression height piston for large bore engine application through analytical simulation study. From the simulation study, 12.5% friction reduction has been achieved in the piston skirt to liner interface for the shorter piston with longer connecting-rod compared to the baseline design.

Piston cooling nozzles/jets play several crucial roles in the power cylinder of an internal combustion engine. Primarily, they help with the thermal management of the piston and provide lubrication to the cylinder liner and the piston’s wrist pin. In order to evaluate the oil jet characteristics from various piston cooling nozzle (PCN) designs, a quantitative and objective process was developed. The PCN characterization began with a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) turbulent model to analyze the mean oil velocity and flow distribution at the nozzle exit/tip. Subsequently, the PCN was tested on a rig for a given oil temperature and pressure. A high-speed camera captured images at 2500 frames per second to observe the evolution of the oil stream as a function of distance from the nozzle exit. An algorithm comprised of standard digital image processing techniques was created to calculate the oil jet width and density.

Accumulation of lubricant and fuel derived ash in the diesel particulate filter (DPF) during vehicle operation results in a significant increase of pressure drop across the after-treatment system leading to loss of fuel economy and reduced soot storage capacity over time. Under certain operating conditions, the accumulated ash and/or soot cake layer can collapse resulting in ash deposits upstream from the typical ash plug section, henceforth termed mid-channel ash deposits. In addition, ash particles can bond (either physically or chemically) with neighboring particles resulting in formation of bridges across the channels that effectively block access to the remainder of the channel for the incoming exhaust gas stream. This phenomenon creates serious long-term durability issues for the DPF, which often must be replaced. Mid-channel deposits and ash bridges are extremely difficult to remove from the channels as they often sinter to the substrate.

Wheel loader subsystems are multi-domain in nature, including controls, mechanisms, hydraulics, and thermal. This paper describes the process of developing a multi-domain simulation of a wheel loader. Working hydraulics, kinematics of the working tool, driveline, engine, and cooling system are modeled in LMS Imagine.Lab Amesim. Contacts between boom/bucket and bucket/ground are defined to constrain the movement of the bucket and boom. The wheel loader has four heat exchangers: charge air cooler, radiator, transmission oil cooler, and hydraulic oil cooler. Heat rejection from engine, energy losses from driveline, and hydraulic subsystem are inputs to the heat exchangers. 3D CFD modeling was done to calibrate airflows through heat exchangers in LMS Amesim. CFD modeling was done in ANSYS FLUENT® using a standard k - ε model with detailed fan and underhood geometry.

Fuel usage negatively impacts the environment and is a significant portion of operational costs of moving freight globally. Reducing fuel consumption is key to lessening environmental impacts and maximizing freight efficiency, thereby increasing the profit margin of logistic operators. In this paper, fuel economy improvements of a cab-over style 49T heavy duty Foton truck powered by a Cummins 12-liter engine are studied and systematically applied for the China market. Most fuel efficiency improvements are found within the vehicle design when compared to opportunities available at the engine level. Vehicle design (improved aerodynamics), component selection/matching (low rolling resistance tires), and powertrain electronic features integration (shift schedule/electronic trim) offer the largest opportunities for lowering fuel consumption.

This paper presents an extension of our earlier work on Cummins Vehicle Mission Simulation (VMS) software. Previously, we presented VMS as a Windows based analysis tool to simulate vehicle missions quickly and to gauge, communicate, and improve the value proposition of Cummins engines to customers. We have subsequently extended this VMS architecture to build a grid-computing platform to support high volume of simulation needs. The building block of the grid-computing version of VMS is an executable file that consists of vehicle and engine simulation models compiled using Real Time Workshop. This executable file integrates MATLAB and Simulink with Java, XML, and JDBC technologies and interacts with the MySQL database. Our grid consists of a cluster of twenty Linux servers with quad-core processors. The Sun Grid Engine software suite that administers this cluster can batch-queue and execute 80 simulations concurrently.

Traditionally, most charge air coolers (CACs) have been constructed using the Nocolok aluminum brazing process. The Nocolok process uses flux, some of which remains after the manufacturing process, and migrates through the intake tract to the engine during normal use. This migration and deposition on engine components can cause a variety of issues with engine operation. Currently the only alternative to Nocolok brazed CACs for engines sensitive to flux migration is vacuum brazing, which comes at a significant price increase. In the effort to reduce cost and increase efficiency, there is interest in whether a Nocolok brazed CAC with a reduced amount of flux residue can be successfully applied to flux-sensitive engines.

Failure analyses were conducted on the top piston rings from selected Caterpillar 1K tests. Metallography, scanning electron microscopy, and X-ray spectroscopy were applied to characterize the top ring surface and subsurface damage. Pitting an erosion of the ring's hard facing characterized the damage observed in the scuffing cases studied. These observations support the theory that top ring failure may have started the chain of events that lead up to piston scuffing in the 1K. The top ring damage may be the result of corrosive combustion by-products that are formed in the ring belt area. The analyses in all three cases indicated that top ring failure had occurred prior to piston skirt scuffing. Several hypotheses are offered as to what may have initiated this top ring failure.

Effective control of exhaust emissions from modern diesel engines requires the use of aftertreatment systems. Elevated aftertreatment component temperatures are required for engine-out emissions reductions to acceptable tailpipe limits. Maintaining elevated aftertreatment components temperatures is particularly problematic during prolonged low speed, low load operation of the engine (i.e. idle, creep, stop and go traffic), on account of low engine-outlet temperatures during these operating conditions. Conventional techniques to achieve elevated aftertreatment component temperatures include delayed fuel injections and over-squeezing the turbocharger, both of which result in a significant fuel consumption penalty. Cylinder deactivation (CDA) has been studied as a candidate strategy to maintain favorable aftertreatment temperatures, in a fuel efficient manner, via reduced airflow through the engine.

The modern diesel engine is used around the world to power applications as diverse as passenger cars, heavy-duty trucks, electrical power generators, ships, locomotives, agricultural and industrial equipment. The success of the diesel engine results from its unique combination of fuel economy, durability, reliability and affordability - which drive the lowest total cost of ownership. The diesel engine has been developed to meet the most demanding on-highway emission standards, through the introduction of advanced technologies such as: electronic controls, high pressure fuel injection, and cooled exhaust gas recirculation. The standards to be introduced in the U.S. in 2007 will see the introduction of the Clean Diesel which will achieve near-zero NOx and particulate emissions, while retaining the customer values outlined above.

Diesel engine cylinder deactivation (CDA) can be used to reduce petroleum consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of the global freight transportation system. Heavy duty trucks require complex exhaust aftertreatment (A/T) in order to meet stringent emission regulations. Efficient reduction of engine-out emissions require a certain A/T system temperature range, which is achieved by thermal management via control of engine exhaust flow and temperature. Fuel efficient thermal management is a significant challenge, particularly during cold start, extended idle, urban driving, and vehicle operation in cold ambient conditions. CDA results in airflow reductions at low loads. Airflow reductions generally result in higher exhaust gas temperatures and lower exhaust flow rates, which are beneficial for maintaining already elevated component temperatures. Airflow reductions also reduce pumping work, which improves fuel efficiency.

This paper presents the business purpose, software architecture, technology integration, and applications of the Cummins Vehicle Mission Simulation (VMS) software. VMS is the value-based analysis tool used by the marketing, sales, and product engineering functions to simulate vehicle missions quickly and to gauge, communicate, and improve the value proposition of Cummins engines to customers. VMS leverages the best of software architecture practices and proven technologies available today. It consists of a close integration of MATLAB and Simulink with Java, XML, and JDBC technologies. This Windows compatible application software uses stand-alone mathematical models compiled using Real Time Workshop. A built-in MySQL database contains product data for engines, driveline components, vehicles, and topographic routes. This paper outlines the database governance model that facilitates effective management, control, and distribution of engine and vehicle data across the enterprise.

Cummins has studied requirements of the Light Truck Automotive market in the United States and believes that the proposed V-family of engines meets those needs. Design and development of the V-family engine system continues and has expanded. The engine system is a difficult one, since the combined requirements of a very fuel-efficient commercial diesel, and the performance and sociability requirements of a gasoline engine are needed. Results of testing show that the engine can meet requirements for fuel economy and emissions in the Tier 2 interim period from 2004 to 2008. Advanced results show that the full Tier 2 results for 2008 and beyond can be achieved on a laboratory basis.

This paper describes the methodology used to select an application-based fan that has optimum operating characteristics in terms of cooling air flow rate, fan power, and noise. The selected fan is then evaluated for structural strength. To evaluate different fans, complete rail coach under-hood simulations were carried out using steady-state 3D computational fluid dynamics (CFD) approach. These simulations considered an actual, highly non-uniform flow field. For each fan option, fan power, air flow rate, and surface acoustic power was evaluated. Pressure profiles on the fan blades were studied to assess the effect of non-uniform downstream air passage designs. Surface acoustic power was calculated using broadband noise source (BNS) model in ANSYS Fluent®. Surface pressure profiles over fan blades imported from 3D CFD were used in finite element analysis (FEA) in ANSYS. Analyses were carried out for blade linear and non-linear properties.

Various 1D simulation tools (KULI & LMS Amesim) and 3D simulation tools (ANSYS FLUENT®) can be used to size and evaluate truck cooling system design. In this paper, ANSYS FLUENT is used to analyze and validate the design of medium duty truck cooling systems. LMS Amesim is used to verify the quality of heat exchanger input data. This paper discusses design and simulation of parent and derivative trucks. As a first step, the parent truck was modeled in FLUENT (using standard' k - ε model) with detailed fan and underhood geometry. The fan is modeled using Multiple Reference Frame (MRF) method. Detailed geometry of heat exchangers is skipped. The heat exchangers are represented by regular shape cell zones with porous medium and dual cell heat exchanger models to account for their contributions to the entire system in both flow and temperature distribution. Good agreement is observed between numerical and experimental engine out temperatures at different engine operating conditions.

Coolant filters have been used for nearly 50 years by heavy duty engine manufacturers but little has been published in the technical literature documenting their performance. In heavy duty cooling systems an extender is periodically added to the system to prevent the coolant from becoming corrosive and replenish additives that stop the build-up of deposits which reduce heat transfer. Not only is the coolant filter the most convenient and reliable method to deliver the extender to the cooling system, it also removes debris from the coolant which can cause deposits and wear, aggravate corrosion, and even plug heat exchangers. Additionally, the used coolant filter serves as a diagnostic trouble shooting tool. This paper concentrates on the value or importance of filtering debris from the coolant of heavy duty diesel engine cooling systems. Published literature is reviewed and recent data from lab testing is reported.

In the early years of antifreeze/coolants (1920s & 30s) glycerin saw some usage, but because of higher cost and weaker freeze point depression, it was not competitive with ethylene glycol. Glycerin is a by-product of the manufacture of biodiesel (fatty acid methyl esters) made by reacting natural vegetable or animal fats with methanol. Biodiesel fuel is becoming increasingly important and is expected to gain a large market share in the next several years. Regular diesel fuels blended with 2%, 5%, and 20% biodiesel are now commercially available. The large amount of glycerin generated from high volume usage of biodiesel fuel has resulted in this chemical becoming cost competitive with the glycols currently used in engine coolants. For this reason, and lower toxicity comparable to that of propylene glycol, glycerin deserves to be reconsidered as a base for antifreeze/coolant.