Press release: Greenchoice Forze is ready for the Championship
GREENCHOICE FORZE IS READY FOR THE CHAMPIONSHIP Formula Zero announces the second hydrogen race in London London - 6 March 2009 Today Formula Zero announces that the second race will be held in London. This represents a fine opportunity for Greenchoice Forze, the hydrogen racing team of TU Delft, to get another step closer to winning the championship. The race is the second in the Formula Zero Championship's series, de first hydrogen racing competetion in the world. Universities from all over the world compete in this championship. There will be raced with carts powered by a hydrogen fuel cell, whereby water is the sole emission. The second race will be held in London on 1 May. While the A1GP World Cup is held on the main track of the Brands Hatch Circuit in England, Greenchoice Forze, TU Delft's team, will battle for glory in the Formula Zero Championship. After winning in Rotterdam last August, Greenchoice Forze will once again face teams of top universities from London, Detroit, California, Leuven and Zaragoza. Preparation At this moment the Greenchoice Forze team of TU Delft is preparing to partake in the upcoming race in London. Students will test and tune the hydrogen powered cart that has been developed by themselves to pass the official technical examination of Formula Zero. Over the last year a team of students of various fields (including Mechanical-, Aerospace-, Industrial Design- and Electronical Engineering) have been busy further improving the hydrogen cart since the last successful race in Rotterdam to stay ahead of competition. In a couple of weeks time it will show whether the team has succeeded in this and whether the cart has been approved a spot in the second race of the Formula Zero Championship. The winning vehicle The Greenchoice Forze kart has a top speed of 100 km/h and the acceleration from standing start to 100 km/h takes 5 seconds. The continuous power of 8 kW (11hp) to drive the two electric motor comes from a fuel cell. The only waste product is water, even more pure than tap-water. Another innovation is the possibility to regenerate and store braking energy. With this feature the kart has a temporary boostpower of 45 hp. The kart has more innovations such as two separate electric motors driving the left- and right wheel independently. This allows the kart to corner faster than conventional karts. The vehicle uses advanced electronics to control all systems and to guarantee safety. The kart is built with innovative and lightweight materials such as carbon fibre reinforced resin and DyneemaŽ polyethylene fiber from DSM to ensure a lightweight, strong and safe kart. Formula Zero Team Delft The Formula Zero Team Delft consists of approximately 40 students from various fields of study of the Technical University Delft. The team of students has developed a cart that uses fuel cell technology to operate. By using sustainable energy to race the team wants to develop sustainable technologies and present these in an attractive fashion. The team is officially the first hydrogen racing team in the world and won the first ever hydrogen race in the centre of Rotterdam in August 2008. This is also why the team is at the top of the Formula Zero League at this moment. In the future the team will also compete in races in both England and Italy, that are part of the 2008/09 Formula Zero Championship. Next to racing the team also gives presentations and demos as has been done on the last Jet-Net & Universum Career Day in the Convention Factory in Amsterdam Greenchoice, the only supplier of 100% sustainable energy in the Netherlands, says the project contains the two necessary steps towards a sustainable world. "The willingness of people to change without sacrificing comfort, and the technologies that enable a sustainable world. Both aspects can be found in this project and we aim to showcase the possibilities of driving on hydrogen" says Rob van Rees, executive director of Greenchoice. www.greenchoice.nl Delft University of Technology. A fascination for science, design and engineering is the common denominator driving the 13,000 bachelor and master students and the 5000 employees of TU Delft. Delft University of Technology is not only the oldest, but also the largest university of technology of the Netherlands. www.tudelft.nl Royal DSM N.V. creates innovative products and services in the field of Life Sciences and Material Sciences that contribute to the quality of life. DSM's products and services are used worldwide in a wide variety of markets and applications that make life healthier, more sustainable and pleasant. A key element is DSM's corporate strategy is the development of innovative products that contribute to the theme of climate change. The combination of this social theme and the use of high-end materials makes for the Greenchoice Forze project of the TU Delft to fit perfectly with DSM's strategy of innovation and corporate social responsibility. www.dsm.com, www.dyneema.com DyneemaŽ is a registered trademark of Royal DSM N.V. Note to editor For more information please contact Ivo Salters, Team manager of Formula Zero team Delft i.r.salters@student.tudelft.nl or by phone +31(0)6-48602688 Website Greenchoice Forze: www.greenchoice-forze.nl