Title: A comparative study of tail air-deflector designs on aerodynamic drag reduction of medium-duty trucks

Authors: Wei Gao; Zhaowen Deng; Yuping He

Addresses: School of Automotive Engineering, Hubei University of Automotive Technology, Shiyan, 442002, China ' School of Automotive Engineering, Hubei University of Automotive Technology, Shiyan, 442002, China ' Department of Automotive and Mechatronics Engineering, University of Ontario Institute of Technology, Oshawa, L1H 7K4, Canada

Abstract: With the rapid development of highway networks and logistics industry in China, medium-duty trucks have been increasingly used for highway and urban area freight transportation. The aerodynamic drag reduction of medium-duty trucks is of significant importance for improving highway transportation efficiency, enhancing fuel economy, and reducing greenhouse emissions. This paper proposes, compares and evaluates seven designs of tail air-deflector, which are devised to reduce aerodynamic drag of a medium-duty truck. The impacts of the shapes and/or configurations of tail air-deflector on the aerodynamic characteristics of the truck are studied using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation. The results attained from the comparative study will provide guidelines for the design of airflow control devices for commercial vehicles to effectively reduce aerodynamic drag.

Keywords: medium-duty trucks; tail air-deflectors; aerodynamic drag reduction; comparative study; parametric study; CFD; computational fluid dynamics; modelling and simulation.

DOI: 10.1504/IJVP.2022.122138

International Journal of Vehicle Performance, 2022 Vol.8 No.2/3, pp.316 - 333

Received: 06 Mar 2021
Accepted: 25 May 2021
Published online: 08 Apr 2022 *

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