Kenworth recently showcased its futuristic ‘SuperTruck 2’ concept at the ACT Expo in Las Vegas, offering a glimpse into what the future of transport might look like…but it’s still powered by diesel.
According to Kenworth, the truck was developed over a six-year period as part of a collaboration with the Department of Energy’s (DOE) SuperTruck program, which aimed to challenge truck makers to improve freight efficiency using a diesel engine as the main power source. The project was the result of a joint investment by the DOE and Paccar.
The resulting SuperTruck 2 surpassed expectations, with Kenworth drastically reducing weight and improving miles per gallon through the use of a radical aerodynamic design and a diesel-hybrid powertrain.
“The goal was a 100% freight efficiency improvement over our 2009 Kenworth T660, which at the time was arguably the most fuel-efficient truck in the industry,” Kenworth and Paccar Vice President, Jim Walenczak said.
“We surpassed the performance of that model to improve efficiency by up to 136%. This was realised through a combination of improving fuel efficiency up to 12.8 mpg while reducing our combination weight by more than 7,000 pounds.
“The result was the ability to haul more payload with an ultra-fuel-efficient tractor-trailer combination.”
The aerodynamic design of the SuperTruck 2 “pushes the limits in reducing aerodynamic drag”, Kenworth’s Chief Engineer, Joe Adams says, while maintaining practicality as a commercial vehicle.
“We started with an ideal aerodynamic shape when we started the design of SuperTruck 2,” he said.
“But, with everything Kenworth, we wanted the SuperTruck 2 to embody ‘The Driver’s Truck’. The result was a systematic approach to developing a futuristic looking, yet relevant vehicle with technologies that have the potential to be refined and commercialised.”
While the sleek, futuristic design looks more like a bullet train than a truck, it in fact houses a Paccar MX-11 diesel engine with 440hp, mated to a TX-12 automated transmission. However, a 48-volt electric generator has been added, as part of a mild hybrid system that uses lithium-ion batteries to store energy during braking.
The harvested energy can then be used to run electric fans, the steering system and various pumps. Removing mechanically-driven accessories lightens the load for the diesel engine, with the old engine fan drawing as much as 80hp during operation.
The SuperTruck 2 team managed a parallel project for energy efficiency testing by combining a PACCAR MX-11 based engine, the mild hybrid based 48-volt auxiliaries and energy waste recovery to bench test a program record 55.7% engine efficiency.
“We did this while keeping in mind the technologies we developed needed to be commercially viable,” PACCAR Senior Engineering Manager for Advanced Technology, Maarten Meijer said.
“Today’s modern diesel engine demonstrates around 47% efficiency. Reaching 55.7% was a major step forward and could only be done by applying new technologies that had not been explored until today. To put that efficiency number into perspective, if this engine were to go into production, it would lead to a 10% fuel efficiency improvement. That’s an astonishing number.”
While the SuperTruck 2 is powered by a diesel engine, Kenworth says the layout was designed to be powertrain agnostic. To support zero and near-zero emission solutions, the truck can efficiently package fuel cells, hydrogen tanks, natural gas tanks, or batteries without changing the basic cab.
