Posts Tagged ‘electric vehicle’
Buckeye Bullet sets electric-powered land speed world record
With more and more students and universities getting into the fight for establishing a new land speed record for battery electric powered vehicles, we are likely to receive more and more news like this one here.
For now however, a team of students from the Ohio State University leads this race, after their battery electric vehicle smashed the records on the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah.
The streamliner in question is called Buckeye Bullet and it managed to run at averages speeds of 495 km/h (307 mph), way faster than the previous record of 395 km/h (245 mph) set in 1990s by Pat Rummerfield in his White Lightning.
Although not yet certified by the International Automobile Federation, such an outcome is expected over the next few weeks. Pat Rummerfield already admitted his record has been broken and congratulated the team…
Buckeye Bullet is powered by a 600-kilowatt lithium-ion battery pack sourced from A123 Systems. The battery packs contains 1600 compact lithium-ion batteries just like the ones used in laptops.
They’re already preparing to break their own record. I expect they will.
I admit the possibility of getting an electric vehicle into the family gets more tempting every week. They get more affordable and my wife’s daily commute fits ideally into even minimal requirements for such a car. And she doesn’t need to go 300 mph.
Disclaimer: I own enough shares in A123 to power my iPad.
Year 2 of the EcoCar challenge
Automotive technology is evolving at a dizzying pace, and training the next generation of car engineers is no longer confined to traditional classrooms and textbooks. Real-world, hands-on experience is crucial and that’s why collegiate engineering competitions like the EcoCar Challenge are more important than ever before. The 2010 finals have just ended and [Motorweek] we were proud to take part in the judging, so let’s tally up the results.
EcoCar is a three-year competition in which 16 North American college teams were challenged to improve the emissions and fuel economy of a compact GM crossover vehicle while retaining all of its utility, safety and performance.
Teams were allowed to design their own drivetrain architectures, and chosen technologies included full-electrics, plug-in hybrids, fuel cells, and extended range electric vehicles…
After a year of modeling and simulation, teams were given their vehicles for year two, and have worked ever since on implementing their designs. But the students also had to think real-world in terms of packaging their components, fit and finish, drivability and consumer acceptance…
All these kids are top-notch engineers already, even before they’ve graduated. But what we’re doing is giving them experience with the latest tools and techniques, plus a very long-term disciplined process that we give to them and their schools so that they can have a three-year experience doing something really big…
After a grueling week of testing, Mississippi State University claimed top honors for 2010. Their Biodiesel extended-range electric vehicle achieved fuel economy equivalent to 118 miles per gallon while also achieving the fastest acceleration and autocross times and the cleanest tailpipe emissions. Congratulations also go to Virginia Tech for 2nd place, and Penn State in 3rd position.
But the EcoCar Challenge doesn’t end here. Year Three of the competition is when teams must show full component integration in a near-production-ready vehicle.
Bravo! To the students and sponsors together and separately. This kind of hands-on experience is invaluable. And, frankly, the competition seems to be turning out some interesting drive trains.
