World Solar Car Challenge

[Joe Blake]

http://www.wsc.org.au/

Coming (very) soon to a planet near you.

And this entry looks pretty neat.

http://www.gizmag.com.au/go/8181/

But I think 75km/h will not be enough.

Wonder who'll win?

Joe

[Wilco Vercoelen]

I'll put my money on Nuon4.
Lets wait and see, they are off to a good start.

[Rob Beckers]

Make that Solar Team Twente for me. My alma mater.... :)

-RoB-

[Joe Blake]

I'd have to go for Willetton Senior High School.

http://www.wsc.org.au/Be.Part.of.It/Photos/21.October/20071021.Kirsty.14.jpg

I met some of the team (and the car) at an alternative energy fair earlier this year, and was able to make a couple of suggestions, which they may have used, such streamlining the "open" underside of the vehicle with a Lycra "sock".

Anyway, it's not really a "race" as such, so I guess we're all going to be winners.

Joe

[Rob Beckers]

A Dutch newspaper is writing that the Delft University team won the race. I can't find any confirmation of this on the official site (in fact, I can't seem to find any link on there with the rankings, it's a very poorly designed site), so I suppose this is not official yet. If correct, congratulations to them!

-RoB-

[Joe Blake]

Well,

I hate to point the bleeding obvious to those with national fervour, (and my initial comments notwithstanding) but strictly speaking it's not a race, it's a challenge so hopefully the winners will be everybody.

But whatever, I think it's a very good effort by everybody, and all are to be congratulated.

Joe

PS, yes it was a pig of a site to get information out of.

But then on the other hand, perhaps the vehicles were travelling so quickly nobody could keep up with them.:rolleyes:

[Rob Beckers]

The October edition of the Dutch "elektor" magazine (http://www.elektor.nl/)has an article about Twente University's solar car, named "Twente One". A summary of the technology:


The entire sub-frame with the solar cells can rotate along the length-axis, to keep the cells facing the sun for a longer part of the day.
The car uses 2073 GaAs (Gallium Arsenide) cells, with an efficiency of over 27% (that's almost twice the efficiency of regular Si cells.
Since the area of solar cells is limited by rules, the car uses Fresnel lenses to collect more sunlight and project it onto the cells. There's a fully automatic system to move lines of cells laterally so they are in the focal area of the lens.
The motor is a kit from CSIRO (http://www.csiro.au/resources/pf11g.html), built directly onto the wheel (direct drive), with an efficiency of 95% - 99%. Might make a good, if expensive, PM alternator for wind as well?
Weight 230kg, top-speed 120 km/h.


You can more information on their Web site (http://www.solarteam.nl/). Unfortunately most of it is in Dutch, there's an English section under 'foreign visitors'. The link named 'Fotoalbum' takes you to lots of pictures.

-RoB-

[Rob Beckers]

From CNN:

http://edition.cnn.com/2007/TECH/science/10/24/solar.race/index.html

-RoB-