To meet the need for innovating eco friendly technologies and to cater to stringent fuel efficiency standards for larger trucks, SABIC has unveiled a thermoplastic roof fairing concept that can potentially reduce annual fuel consumption of a heavy-duty truck by at least three percent.

The design concept is aerodynamically optimised to deflect air by accelerating airflow through and across the top and sides of the roof fairing. This leads to up to 5.9 percent drop in drag, significantly improving the aerodynamic performance and fuel efficiency of a heavy-duty truck.

SABIC's new thermoplastic roof fairing concept incorporates air ducts to reduce front end pressure and accelerate airflow both over the surface and through the fairing itself. Conventional roof fairings, in contrast, achieve aerodynamic efficiencies simply by maximising airflow over smooth, closed surfaces.

"By improving the aerodynamic performance of this one application alone, fleet operators stand to save millions of dollars in fuel costs each year and over the lifetime of their entire vehicle fleet," said Scott Fallon, General Manager, Automotive, SABIC's Innovative Plastics business.

The development of this concept is timely for heavy truck manufacturers and operators in the US as new and demanding fuel efficiency and greenhouse gas emission standards for medium- and heavy-duty trucks beyond model year 2018 are expected to arrive by March 2016. This concept will also be of interest to truck operators around the world as several other countries are also setting new fuel efficiency and emission standards for heavy-duty trucks.
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