A group of students from the University of Twente are seeking to defend their crown at the Shell Eco-marathon Europe this May by winning a race based not on speed, but on economical driving.

Green Team Twente

This group of seven students from the University of Twente, who call themselves the Green Team Twente, will compete against 200 other teams of students in Rotterdam in attempting to make the most fuel-efficient vehicle.

Last year the team from Twente came away with first prize in the UrbanConcept hydrogen class, successfully creating and using a vehicle that would be able to travel 727,5 km on just one litre of petrol.

This year the team is hoping to go much further with the UTmotive, their hydrogen-powered entry for the eco-marathon. Thanks to the use of the latest techniques and materials the students have kept the weight of the vehicle below 80 kilos, meaning that it could potentially travel 1.000 kilometres on the equivalent of 1 litre of petrol.

Ready for the road

The UrbanConcept class in which the team are competing demands that the vehicle show that has the potential to be driven on a normal highway. Thus the team has included lights, wing mirrors and a windscreen wipe on the UTmotive.

Being powered by hydrogen alone, the only by-product from driving it is water vapour and, after the eco-marathon, the team hopes to have the vehicle approved by the RDW (the Dutch Road Transport Authority) in what would be an important step towards the recognition of hydrogen cars as road-worthy.

Thumb photo via Green Team Twente
Source: University of Twente