High-efficiency, low-risk electrified transmission fluid

The right Electrified Transmission Fluid (ETF) can deliver significant efficiency gains of up to 1.5% without impacting durability by using an optimized formulation based on tailored additive technology with a base oil. Viscosity, cooling, and traction are the three interrelated lubricant levers that influence eAxle efficiency, and balancing them in a high-efficiency ETF is a complex process.

SwARC, a joint venture between China Automotive Technology & Research Center and US-based Southwest Research Institute, has progressed ETF testing with the most common eAxles. This SwARC research demonstrates the clear role high-efficiency ETF can play in helping OEMs to meet increasing power density targets without compromising mechanical protection, compatibility, or durability. Four different OEM platforms were tested through four eAxle efficiency test procedures at up to three different coolant temperatures, using the factory fill fluid as the reference oil. Across the four efficiency procedures, the Afton candidate fluid delivered the most significant efficiency increases across all test procedures and eAxle platforms. Afton’s approach brings together its additive expertise with insights from modeling and simulation to create a low-viscosity fluid with low traction properties. 

In this article, Afton shares this independent research into efficiency gains and highlights the advantages of applying fluid expertise during eAxle development that helps OEMs meet increasing power density targets without compromising mechanical protection, compatibility, or durability.
 
This article featured in the November edition of Electric and Hybrid Vehicle Magazine.