May 12 2009
Background
WorldFirst Racecar
Materials
Fuel and Lubricants
Steering Wheel
Car Body
Seat
Brakes
Tyres
Green is Great Ethos
Background
Financial and environmental costs mean the long term viability of motor racing is being critically questioned. Taking this into consideration, the Warwick Innovative Manufacturing Research Centre (WIMRC), part of Warwick University, have built a competitive racing car using environmentally sustainable components.
WorldFirst Racecar
The new WorldFirst racecar is the first Formula 3 racing car designed and made from sustainable and renewable materials.
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The WorldFirst Formula 3 Racecar
Materials
The WorldFirst racing car's sustainability claims start with a large proportion of the vehicle made from plant derived materials plus propulsion and lubrication from plant based fuel and oils.
Fuel and Lubricants
The racing car uses a biodiesel fuelled engine. The biodiesel is made from cocoa butter (a waste product from making chocolate) and vegetable oil. Lubricants have ben made from plant oils.
Steering Wheel
The steering wheel is made from a carrot based biopolymer.
Car Body
Depending on the requirements for any given location the body parts are made from different materials. These materials include:
- recycled carbon fibre
- fibreglass with resin made from recycled plastic bottles
- flax fibre and resin made from recycled plastic bottles
- composite with a potato starch core and flax fibre shell
Seat
The car seat has a flax fibre shell, soy bean oil foam and recycled polyester fabric
Brakes
Brake pads made from cashew nut shells are under development
Tyres
Special tyres have been used that eliminate polycyclic aromatics
Green is Great Ethos
As original equipment manufacturers focus on decreasing engine emissions, to meet future CO2, the WorldFirst project proves that if you are going to wholeheartedly embrace the ‘green is great’ ethos and do more than merely posture, you have to broaden your vision. This must encompass a strategy that stretches throughout the chain from the raw materials to the final disposal of the car. The project clearly demonstrates that automotive environmentalism can and should be about the whole package.
Project Director, James Meredith, said “It’s been very exciting working on the project and important for our team to develop a working example of a truly ‘Green’ motor racing car. The WorldFirst project expels the myth that performance needs to be compromised when developing the sustainable motor vehicles of the future”
Source: AZoCleantech and WorldFirst Racing