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FUEL COSTS SOLUTIONS * USA - Truckers go for gas-saving tech
Route planning. Stramlined designs. Better tires. Can Boost a Semi's Mileage
Los Angeles,CAL,USA -Los Angeles Times, by Ken Bensinger -25 May 2008: -- ... Engineers and manufacturers furiously are developing new fuel-friendly technology. And commercial fleets are using high-tech software to calculate every aspect of their drivers' routes, down to where they should fill up and where they should stop for the night... Because of short supply, the price of diesel has risen more than twice as much as gasoline in the past year, selling at well over $4 a gallon. With little hope of a near-term decline - oil hit a record $135.09 a barrel Thursday - the run-up is causing panic and prompting radical cultural and technological shifts in the struggling trucking industry... Instead of obsessing over chrome trim or the latest cab amenities to ease life on the road, truck owners and operators fed up with getting 5 mpg are delving into long-ignored subjects like aerodynamics, slower cruising speeds and more efficient tires... Several manufacturers are making hybrid trucks, which capture braking energy to boost mileage, making them perfect for vehicles like garbage trucks that make frequent stops. Earlier this month, the Port of Los Angeles unveiled a fully electric truck it helped develop that's capable of towing shipping containers as far as 30 miles on a single charge... Kambiz Salari, a fluid dynamics engineer at California's Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, has spent the past decade developing inventions that increase fuel economy - including a giant fan behind the cab that reduces drag-creating turbulence. None has been adopted commercially, but this year the U.S. Department of Energy is offering grants to trucking companies that will test those devices on their fleet. "Fuel costs are bringing attention to our research," he said... "This industry is changing," said Bob Weber, the International engineer. "Ten mpg is now feasible."...
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