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Ethanol Car Beats Fuel Cells to Win European Eco-marathon
Source: Environment News Service
Publication Date: 21st June 2006
An ethanol powered car engineered by French high school students has achieved the best fuel efficiency at the European Shell Eco-marathon 2006, winning the race at the Nogaro auto racing circuit in southwest France. It also took the Climate Friendly prize for producing the least greenhouse gas emissions in the process.
Engineering students from France's Lycée La Joliverie celebrated victory Sunday after their ethanol powered prototype vehicle completed seven laps of the Nogaro circuit with an energy consumption equivalent to traveling 2,885 kilometres (1,792 miles) on a single litre of gasoline, equivalent to 8,136 miles per gallon. Lycée La Joliverie is a high school in St. Sebastian-sur-Loire, France, that specializes in internal combustion engines.
“The performance of the ethanol team has shown that hydrogen powered vehicles are not the only solution to the Shell Eco-marathon challenge for energy efficiency," said Vincent Tertois, technical director for the Shell Eco-marathon. The fact that all top eight teams had broken the 2,000 kilometres per litre (km/l) consumption barrier was an achievement that would have been “impossible” several years ago.
The winning ethanol-powered car was built by high school students from the Loire region of France. (Photo courtesy Shell Eco-Marathon)
But the overall fuel efficiency record of 3,836 kilometres traveled on a single litre of fuel (10,822 mpg) set at last year’s European Shell Eco-marathon, remained unbroken as participants struggled against high winds and intermittent rain in Nogaro. The record was set by ETH Zürich with a hydrogen fuel cell car that is rated by the Guinness Book of Records as the world's most fuel efficient car.
The Lycée La Joliverie team’s achievement came at the end of a weekend that seemed likely to be dominated by hydrogen powered vehicles.
The hydrogen fuel cell powered Polytech Nantes-La Joliverie team from France had led the consumption rankings for much of the Eco-marathon weekend with a 2,730 km/l equivalent consumption – but eventually placed third after the hydrogen powered ESSTIN-Vandoeuvre-les-Nancy team, also of France.
Polytech Nantes-Joliverie had been locked in a battle with German team Hochschule Offenburg and ESSTIN to achieve the best ranking for a hydrogen car.
All of the top three teams were from French schools. At the close of the circuit on Sunday, Hochschule Offenburg found themselves in fourth position with a fuel consumption of 2,614 km/l. The team had switched from diesel to hydrogen for the 2006 event, and they used an innovative wheel-hub motor, which won them the Bosch technical innovation award.
"The fact that so many fuel types are represented in the top teams is a great sign of the wide range of alternative energies which could play a part in the future of transportation," Tertois said.
Run since 1985, the European Shell Eco-marathon offers participants from across Europe the opportunity to test their sustainable transportation ideas.
Some members of the winning team from Lycée La Joliverie with their cars at Nogaro (Photo courtesy Shell Eco-Marathon)
The principle of the race is simple - to drive the maximum number of kilometers on a motor circuit with the highest energy yield possible. Teams are free to use any conventionally available energy source, including petrol or gasoline, diesel, liquefied petroleum gas, solar, electric, hydrogen, or biofuel such as ethanol.
Serge Giacomo, director of external affairs for Shell, said the presence of all the energy types in the top 30 consumption ranking was a great sign for the future of affordable and efficient energy development.
“In the consumption ranking the first 27 teams have all broken the 1,000 km/l, it is fantastic to see the teams have achieved such a high level for this year’s European Shell Eco-marathon," Giacomo said.
“To see so many different energy types achieving these consumption levels is also a great reward for the hard work all the participants have put in throughout this year long project and it takes us to the next step in promoting and encouraging the most efficient energy use," he said.
Students from Brazil, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and across Europe were in the line-up of futuristic vehicles, which give a glimpse of how these young scientists and technicians may influence the transportation of tomorrow.
To fairly judge differing energy types against each other, participating teams are required to complete seven laps of the Nogaro racing circuit within the regulation time. Total energy consumed is then calculated and expressed an an equivalent of kilometres per litre of gasoline (petrol).
The team from the Institut Universitaire de Technologie of Valenciennes, France topped the diesel category.
Added to the database on 21st June 2006
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Keywords: ethanol, car, French high school, students, fuel efficiency, European, Shell Eco-marathon, 2006, Nogaro, auto, racing, circuit, France, Climate Friendly prize, greenhouse gas, emissions
http://www.ens-newswire.com/
