Compact, Lightweight Radiator has environmentally friendly design. .

Press Release Summary:



Without compromising on strength or performance, 16 mm wide radiator is sized to afford flexibility for installation in engine compartment while also promoting vehicle safety in case of frontal collision. Tank is made with environmentally friendly plant-derived resin, and efficient heat radiation is achieved via fin design with optimized number of louvers on surface. Material of construction for fins and tubes also promotes to overall efficiency.



Original Press Release:



DENSO Slashes Size and Weight of Radiator by 40 Percent



Environmentally friendly design allows for more efficient use under-the-hood real
estate

KARIYA (Japan) - DENSO Corporation developed a new and more efficient radiator that is 40 percent smaller and lighter, compared to DENSO's previous radiators. Also, the radiator's tank is made with a plant-derived resin making it more environmentally friendly than conventional radiators.

"The radiator's reduced size translates into greater design flexibility for installation in the engine compartment. This also helps make the vehicle safer in the event of a frontal collision because the reduced size allows for a larger impact or crash zone," said Akio Shikamura, senior executive director of DENSO's Thermal Systems Business Group. "In addition, the radiator's tank is made of a plant-derived resin, which DENSO has been mass-producing since 2009, making the radiator greener and environmentally cleaner than traditional radiators."

Smaller, Lighter, More Efficient:
With higher heat radiation efficiency, the new radiator is only 16 mm wide, but equal in performance to the conventional 27 mm wide radiators, resulting in a substantial size and weight reduction. A radiator's performance depends on its two major components - fins and tubes. The radiator's more efficient heat radiation is achieved through improvements in the design of the fins.

DENSO increased the amount of louvers - that are located on the surface of the fin - to 30 percent per unit area. This design change allowed the radiator to have 10 percent more efficient heat radiation than DENSO's conventional radiators.

DENSO, along with a materials manufacturer, has jointly developed thinner and higher-strength materials that are used to make the fins and tubes. This new material allows for a global procurement of materials, which helps DENSO be cost-effective in all regions around the world. The fin, using DENSO's manufacturing expertise, is the world's thinnest of its kind. The radiator offers the same strength as DENSO's previous radiators while using thinner materials. All these advantages enabled the radiator to be 40 percent smaller and lighter than the previous models. The newly developed 16 mm wide radiator is installed in the Lexus GS. In addition to the 16 mm wide radiator, DENSO will also commercialize a 27 mm wide type, which is thinner than the conventional model of 36 mm type, and 11.5 mm wide type which are thinner than the conventional model of 16 mm, to offer a wider range of the new radiator series for a greater range of vehicle models.

DENSO will continue its research and development to expand its new radiator series into more environment-friendly and safer products to meet the increasingly diverse vehicle needs worldwide.

DENSO Corporation, headquartered in Kariya, Aichi prefecture, Japan, is a leading global automotive supplier of advanced technology, systems and components in the areas of thermal, powertrain control, electric, electronics and information and safety. Its customers include all the world's major carmakers. Worldwide, the company has more than 200 subsidiaries and affiliates in 35 countries and regions (including Japan) and employs approximately 120,000 people.

Consolidated global sales for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2011, totaled US$37.7 billion. Last fiscal year, DENSO spent 9.3 percent of its global consolidated sales on research and development. DENSO common stock is traded on the Tokyo and Nagoya stock exchanges. For more information, go to www.globaldenso.com, or visit our media website at www.densomediacenter.com.

[Reference]
The radiator, located at the front of the engine compartment of a vehicle, is a heat exchanger which cools the engine cooling water. The radiator consists of three units: tubes through which engine cooling water flows, a tank that stores the water, and corrugated fins for heat exchange. When outside air drawn through the front side of the engine compartment is forced throug h the radiator fins, it removes heat from the fins and thus cools the engine cooling water flowing through the tubes.

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