Truck & Off-Highway Engineering - August 2024 - 7

TECHNICAL INNOVATIONS
MATERIALS
EV lightweighting via industrial rubber products
Santoprene, a type of thermoplastic elastomer (TPE), weighs about 30% less than EPDM and can be
used for flooring instead of carpets.
Electric trucks and off-highway vehicles
weigh about 30% more than their gasoline-
and diesel-powered counterparts.
That's a challenge for OEMs who want
to reduce vehicle weight to increase
range but are bound by the limits of
current battery technology.
To reduce vehicle weight, OEMs can
make design changes in other areas, such
as by replacing steel with thermoformed
plastics, aluminum alloys and composite
materials. What manufacturers may overlook,
however, is the weight savings that
can be achieved with industrial rubber
products. Rubber is already lightweight,
but there are heavier-than-necessary
elastomeric components used throughout
vehicle interiors and exteriors, typically
with metal or plastic fasteners.
Door and window gaskets, rubber
flooring, battery seals and molded
parts like rubber bushings all provide
engineers with lightweighting opportunities.
Larger design changes and new
assembly processes may be required,
but EV lightweighting still begins with
material selection.
TRUCK & OFF-HIGHWAY ENGINEERING
TPE the light choice
Electric trucks and off-highway vehicles
use various synthetic rubber compounds,
but ethylene propylene diene
monomer (EPDM) is used commonly for
sealing because of its durability, weather-resistance
and cost-effectiveness.
EPDM weather seals, or weather stripping,
are rubber components that form
a seal around the edges of a vehicle's
doors, windows, windshield, roof,
hatches, wheel wells, fender flares and
other exposed areas. EPDM rubber also
has applications in vehicle flooring,
floor mats and for storage compartment
liners.
Santoprene, a type of thermoplastic
elastomer (TPE), weighs approximately
30% less than EPDM and provides the
type of environmental resistance that
trucks and off-road vehicles require.
This flexible and abrasion-resistant
thermoplastic vulcanizate (TPV) can
also replace the EPDM that is used for
flooring instead of carpets, which are
lighter weight but can wear out more
quickly. The material offers a smoother
August 2024 7
ELASTO PROXY

http://nasatech.hotims.com/86282-702

Truck & Off-Highway Engineering - August 2024

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