BioDiesel Fun Facts –
The World’s First Sustainable Race Car Makes You Go Yum Yum
Published on October 5th, 2009
Posted in Motorsports
The concept is good - a completely sustainable Formula 3 race car. But the products used, well, that may be another story. The race car is made from woven flax and carrot pulp as well as recycled carbon fibre and recycled resin. In addition it uses biodiesel made from chocolate and animal fats and is lubricated with plant oils. Hungry anyone?
According to EPSRC funded researcher Dr. Kerry Kirwan with the
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Several race car drivers have given the concept car the seal of approval including Lewis Hamilton, a top Formula 1 competitor and Adam Carroll, A1 Grand Prix championship driver, as well as Ross Brown, the team owner of the F1 team. The car will make its racing debut in the Formula 3 Championship final at Brands Hatch on October 17, 2009. The goal is to prove to the world that you can have high performance cars while still being environmentally friendly.
“Being sustainable and green can be incredibly sexy, fun and fast,” says Kirwan. “Even though people’s perception of motorsport is that it’s wasteful, this project is aiming to show ways for the future, for people to race and be green.”
For those motorsports fans, you may have heard that in 2007, the IndyCar Series wowed the world when it debuted in 100 percent fuel-grade ethanol cars. As compared to other racing fuels, the cars were faster, had better torque and better fuel economy. Following suit, in 2008, the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) debuted cellulosic E85. The ethanol was derived from waste wood, and several teams took the winner’s circle using the cellulosic E85, most notably the Corvette Racing Team.
ALMS took it one more step by launching its Green Challenge™ award and trophy for both a prototype and Grand Touring (GT) class team. The winner is the car that demonstrates the best overall performance, fuel efficiency and environmental impact during the race. However, to date, no car has been designed to be fully sustainable–until now with the launch of the ‘chocolate car‘.
Here are a few more details on the sustainability elements of the car.
- The barge board is made from three dimensional woven hemp. In addition, the barge board has a flax bib — this is the same material that is used to make tablecloths or napkins.
- The air intake in the radiator has a catalytic converter on board that converts low level ozone into oxygen as you drive.
- The steering wheel is comprised of refuse carrot pulp that comes from the soup or juice industries.
- The side pods and engine cover are made out of recycled carbon fibre from the aerospace industry. It might not be good enough for space but it’s good enough for the road.
- The car is also built using a resin from PET bottles, such as coke bottles, that would otherwise go into a land fill.
- The engine has been converted to run on biodiesel that is produced from waste materials such as chocolate, animal fats or vegetable oils. Chocolate? Really? I’m sorry, but is there really such a thing as ‘waste chocolate’? I think not. And isn’t the world upset about using “food for fuel already?
- All lubricants used in the car are derived from plant oils.
“There is a wide recognition in the motor sport industry that it needs to be greener to be more relevant to society and therefore to get the viewing figures and sponsorship that allows them to go racing,” says Kirwan. “And this is the means of showing people how it can be done. We are very environmentally friendly, we are not damaging the environment but we are still very competitive in motorsport terms.”
We won’t have to wait long to determine if the car is truly competitive (Oct. 17 to be exact). And I wonder if those who will actually be at the race will be craving carrots or chocolate?
BioDiesel Motorcycles – yes – diesel motorbikes, while rare, are available and yes they run like a charm on various blends of biodiesel.
Biodiesel w/ kick – how about a tricked out biodiesel powered Cadillac Esplenade that delivers over 400 hp?
And the ultimate – so far – is the latest version of the bio powered watercraft – boat doesn’t quite describe it – that is slated to break the ‘around the world’ speed record this summer. See Picture below
And finally - Biodiesel takes to the air in this Czech fighter jet..... click here
Update - 2/24/08
A Virgin Atlantic jumbo jet flew from London to Amsterdam with one of its fuel tanks filled with a bio-jet blend including babassu oil and coconut oil. A Virgin Atlantic statement said the biofuel mix provided 25 per cent of the fuel for the test flight.
The biofuels blend on the Virgin flight contained 20 per cent neat biofuel and 80 per cent conventional jet fuel. Virgin founder Richard Branson said tests had shown it was possible to fly with a 40 per cent blend.
"Today marks a vital breakthrough for the whole airline industry," Mr. Branson told reporters in a hangar at Heathrow airport prior to the flight's departure.
GRAND FORKS --- Renewable jet propellant-8 (JP-8) fuel developed and produced by the Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) at the University of North Dakota was successfully flown in a rocket built by Flometrics, Inc., a product engineering company specializing in fluid dynamics and thermodynamics based in San Diego, California. The fuel burn was so successful that the rocket approached Mach 1 (the speed of sound) and reached an altitude of about 20,000 feet. The launch was conducted on a hot summer day in the Mojave Desert, home to numerous aviation and rocket tests throughout history, just outside of San Diego.
"The demonstration worked very well, and we were pleased with the fuel. In fact, it performed better than expected," said Steve Harrington, President of Flometrics. "The initial launch was a little explosive, which we call a hard-start, but it ended up working very well. The rocket appeared to have reached the transonic regime close to Mach 1. The data are currently being evaluated for more details on this exciting flight," he said.
The EERC's fuel was created from completely renewable crop oils, such as canola and soybeans. Developed through a variety of existing contracts, the fuel was vigorously tested at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), a cosponsor of the test along with the EERC and Flometrics, and meets all of the screening criteria for JP-8 aviation fuel, a petroleum-based fuel widely used by the U.S. military. The major advantage of the EERC's renewable fuel is that the fuel can be designed to meet a wide variety of mission-specific requirements.
About 8 gallons of fuel was sent to the Flometrics research facilities, enough for two launches. The rocket used in the launch was originally built as a test rocket for the Discovery Channel series MythBusters. The rocket has previously been tested with standard Jet-A fuel and rocket propellant-1 (RP-1) kerosene, for which the rocket was originally designed.
"This is a unique opportunity for the EERC's renewable fuel," said EERC Director Gerald Groenewold. "Our fuel is already providing a pathway to energy security to the U.S. military and now is becoming an option for ground-to-air missiles and even space flight." Groenewold added the fuel burns extremely clean, minimizing the environmental footprint and substantially reducing upper atmospheric particulate.
The EERC is currently securing further funding for more extensive rocket testing of the fuel. The AFRL may also be testing the fuel in this type of high-propulsion scenario. Video of the rocket launch is available at www.undeerc.org.
About Flometrics
Flometrics has been extensively involved in the amateur liquid-fueled rocket world since 1998. The company has built and flown four liquid propellant vehicles and performed numerous static tests on various Jet-A-fueled rocket engines. Visit www.flometrics.com to learn more.
About AFRL
The AFRL is the Air Force's only organization wholly dedicated to leading the discovery, development, and integration of war-fighting technologies for our air, space, and cyberspace forces. It is a full-spectrum laboratory, responsible for planning and executing the Air Force' science and technology program. Visit www.wpafb.af.mil/AFRL/ to learn more.
Derek Walters, EERC Communications Manager
(701) 777-5113
