Industry News

Cummins Receives $54 Million in Funding for Truck Projects

January 11, 2010

Cummins will receive nearly $54 million in funding from the Department of Energy (DOE) for two projects aimed at improving fuel efficiency in heavy-duty and light-duty vehicles, according to an announcement made by United States Secretary of Energy Dr. Steven Chu at Cummins’ Columbus Technical Center, Columbus, Ind. The Cummins awards were among nine project awards, totaling more than $187 million.

The funding details finds Cummins will receiving nearly $39 million in funding to support systems level technology development, integration, and demonstration for highly efficient Class 8 trucks --- the so-called SuperTruck. Cummins will receive an additional $15 million in funding to support advanced technology powertrains for light-duty vehicles (ATP-LD). In addition to the benefits of reduced fuel consumption and petroleum usage, the improvements in engine system efficiency will deliver a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, Cummins said.

Cummins will partner with Peterbilt Motors Company, a division of PACCAR, for its SuperTruck project. The Cummins project will develop and demonstrate a highly efficient and clean diesel engine, an advanced waste heat recovery system, an aerodynamic Peterbilt tractor and trailer combination, and a fuel cell auxiliary power unit to reduce engine idling.

The goal of the SuperTruck program initiated by the DOE is to improve Class 8 vehicle freight efficiency by 50 percent through advanced and highly efficient engine systems and vehicle technologies that also meet prevailing emissions and Class 8 tractor-trailer vehicle safety and regulatory requirements. Every facet of energy consumption of a Class 8 tractor and trailer will be addressed through the development and integration of advanced technologies.

The goal of the ATP-LD program will be to develop a fuel-efficient, low emissions diesel engine that achieves a 40 percent fuel economy improvement over conventional gasoline technology and significantly exceeds 2010 EPA emissions requirements. The plan calls for the project to develop and demonstrate an advanced, highly integrated combustion engine and aftertreatment system to achieve Tier2 Bin2 emission compliance while maintaining vehicle performance and drivability. The project will also develop the system architecture to accommodate on-board diagnostic regulations from the design stage to better enable product commercialization.