1

National Textile University

B.Sc. Textile Engineering

ME

Title:
“Fuel Economy”

Submitted by:
Huzaifa Ehsan
07-NTU-075
Semester: 6th
Section: B

Submitted to:
Sir Hassan

Date of Submission: 04-02-2011

1
 2

Fuel Economy:
Rolling resistance is composed of all the components on the
coach that have to rotate in relationship with the ground. If
you look at your tires, they have a flat spot where they
contact the ground. There is a bulge at the bottom of the
tire where it is distorted by the contact with the ground. As
that tire rotates, that bulge moves as the tire sidewalls are
flexed causing the tire to warm up. Again, that heat is the
manifestation of the losses caused by rolling.

Potential energy is what moves a weight from one height to

another. Just walk up a flight of stair to experience
expending potential energy. The more weight, the more
energy it takes. If you climb over a mountain pass, you have
invested a tremendous amount of energy simply moving
your vehicle up the hill. In an ideal world, that energy is
recoverable, because you can coast down the other side, but
in reality, you end up wasting that energy by either using the
engine or the brakes to slow you down. When traveling in
hilly country your mileage will be significant and negatively
affected. Exactly how much will depend on how fast you go
up the hill.

The effectiveness of using all this energy is determined by

many factors. Diesels are inherently more efficient than gas
engines, but if you have a gas engine there is nothing you
can do, except to learn how to drive your vehicle, no matter
what it is or what type of engine you have, economically.
This what we will spend the rest of this article describing

2
 3

Fuel economy (efficiency)

Efficiency is defined as output per input. In automobiles
it is the distance traveled per unit of fuel used; in miles
per gallon (mpg) or kilometres per litre (km/L),
commonly used in in the UK, U.S. (mpg) and Japan,
Korea, India, Pakistan, parts of Africa, The Netherlands,
Denmark and Latin America (km/L). If mpg is used, it is
important to know which gallon is being referred to; the
imperial gallon is about 20% larger than the U.S. gallon.

Fuel economy and fuel consumption are reciprocal

quantities. To convert either way between L/100 km and
miles per U.S. gallon, divide 235 by the number in question;
for miles per imperial gallon, divide 282 by either number.
For example, to convert from 30 mpg (U.S.) to L/100 km,
divide 235 by 30, giving 7.83 L/100 km; or from 10 L/100 km
to mpg (U.S.), divide 235 by 10, giving 23.5 mpg. To convert
between L/100 km and km/L, divide 100 by the number in
question.

A related measure is the amount of carbon dioxide produced

as a result of the combustion process, typically measured in
grams of CO2 per kilometre (CO2 g/km). A petrol (gasoline)
engine will produce around 2.32 kg of carbon dioxide for
each litre of petrol consumed (19.4 lb/gal). A typical diesel
engine produces 2.66 kg/L (22.23 lb/gal)[2][3] though typically
burns fewer litres per kilometre for an otherwise identical
car. Since the CO2 are relatively constant per litre, they are

3
 4

proportional to fuel emissions consumption

4
 5

Improving Your Fuel Economy

Here are a few things you can do today to get better fuel mileage
from your existing vehicle.

1. DriveSensibly
Think "steady and smooth" as you drive and take the
long view of the road so you can brake easy. Don’t mash
the gas when you start up and don’t brake hard to stop.
Up to a 33% improvement in highway fuel economy can
be realized by changing aggressive driving habits—that
translates into a savings potential of more than 180
gallons of fuel or $550 per year

2. Drive the Speed Limit

On the highway, you can assume that with each 5 mph

you drive over 60 mph your fuel economy drops by 5%.
In town, driving at the speed limit will give you more
green lights, improve your gas mileage, reduce idling
time, and reduce the wear and tear on your brakes.
Using the highway example, when you drive 75 mph vs.
55 mph it’s like burning an extra gallon of fuel every
100 miles you drive. So, if you drive 10,000 highway
miles, your savings could be as much as $300 per year.

3. Selectively Use Cruise Control

Edmonds.com states that you can improve your fuel

economy by up to 14% by engaging cruise control when
appropriate. Using cruise control smoothes out the
accelerator input and encourages the driver not to
react to every change in traffic. However, it is
counterproductive to use cruise control in hilly terrain;
it tries to maintain the set speed and will use a lot of
extra fuel downshifting and accelerating faster than
typical. Using cruise control on 10,000 of the miles you

5
 6

drive in a year could save you nearly $200 and more

than 60 gallons of fuel.

4. Avoid Excessive Idling

When your vehicle’s engine is idling it gets 0 mpg,

contributes to air pollution, and causes engine wear. It
is more efficient to turn the engine off while you wait
and restart the car when your wait is over. The
California Energy Commission (CEC) recommends that
you shut off your car anytime you are waiting for more
than 10 seconds. CEC asserts that an idling vehicle
consumes as much as 1 gallon of fuel per hour. Based
on the commission’s statement that most people idle 5-
10 minutes per day, the savings translate into more
than $150 per year.

5. Follow the Recommended Maintenance

A vehicle that is well maintained operates with greater

efficiency and ultimately improves overall vehicle
performance and fuel economy. Fouled spark plugs, a
dirty air filter, or a clogged fuel filter will have an
adverse effect on your fuel economy. Check your
vehicle’s owner's manual for maintenance
recommendations and schedule check-ups accordingly.