Numerical evaluation of vehicles aerodynamics in platoon using CFD simulation

Abstract

Due to increased traffic and new technologies developed to improve road safety, a new vehicle driving technique is being studied. The vehicles’ platooning driving method has as objective to minimize the aerodynamic drag and therefore the fuel consumption. The aim of this study is to evaluate the distance between platoon traveling vehicles and to propose an optimal travel distance. The CFD evaluation is performed for two categories of vehicles at a given velocity and distance between them for two cases: in the first simulation scenario, a tractor-trailer is represented, followed by a SUV positioned at a given distance from the rear of the vehicle combination; in the second simulation, two tractor-trailers at the same boundary condition as for the first case are simulated. The vehicles models are made by using a CAD modelling environment, respecting the overall dimensions of an existing vehicle. The numerical evaluation of a distance between vehicle models is performed using the CFD method based on the Navier-Stokes equations averaging. The last part of the paper presents the interpretation of CDF simulation results, establishing the recommended travel distance between vehicles and conclusions of this study.