Civil engineers find savings where the rubber meets the road: Stiffer roads reduce fuel consumption
Tuesday, May 22, 2012 - 16:30
in Physics & Chemistry
Pavement deflection under vehicle tires makes for a continuous uphill drive that increases fuel consumption, new research shows. A new study by civil engineers at MIT shows that using stiffer pavements on the nation’s roads could reduce vehicle fuel consumption by as much as 3 percent — a savings that could add up to 273 million barrels of crude oil per year, or $15.6 billion at today’s oil prices. This would result in an accompanying annual decrease in CO2 emissions of 46.5 million metric tons.