Cooper gets $1.5M DOE grant for fuel-effiency technology

ERJ staff report (TB)

Washington DC -- The U.S. Department of Energy has awarded Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. a $1.5 million grant to develop technology to make tires more fuel-efficient.

The grant is one of 40 the DOE awarded this week as part of an initiative “to accelerate the development and deployment of advanced vehicle technologies,” according to Energy Secretary Steven Chu. The grants, which also include two worth $1.5 million each to Goodyear, are worth more than $175 million.

The projects being funded will target innovations throughout the vehicle, Mr. Chu said, including better fuels and lubricants, lighter-weight materials, longer-lasting and less-expensive electric vehicle batteries and components, more efficient engine technologies, etc.

Cooper's project is to “develop and demonstrate a new class of fuel-efficient tires, focused on the replacement market, using innovative materials technology and tire design concepts to improve overall fuel efficiency by 3 percent,” according to the DOE's list of projects.

Cooper did not provide additional information on its work.