Solar and Electric 500 John Takes copyright 1991 John Takes In many ways, the Solar and Electric 500 was a first of a kind event. Solarelectric vehicles races have until now been held across open country for relatively long distances. The Tour de Sol, Australian Solar Challenge and GM Sunnyrace are typical examples. The Solar and Electric 500 was held at Phoenix International Raceway on a one mile closed circuit track. The vehicles in the race were comprised of two categories, solarelectric vehicles and late model four wheel passenger electric cars. The solar electric portion of the event was to cover 186 laps (186m/300km) in two sessions. The electric car event was 124 laps (124m/200km). Something to behold The solar electric races were something to behold. Elegant streamlined shapes with precision engineering and high output solar cells gliding quietly around banked corners and straightaways. Everything about these vehicles is geared toward efficiency. It was fascinating to observe the crews working on these vehicles in the garage area inspecting, modifying and preparing their cars for the race. In a flurry of activity, whole bodies with integrated solar cells were removed so that motors, controls or drive gear could be dealt with. The Solar Electric Winners Examining the inside of the Swiss entry "Spirit of Biel" one gets the impression that every fastener, lever, and bracket has been thought out in terms of its function and fabricated accordingly. The vehicle carries 1,300 watts of photovoltaics (17% efficient cells) and utilizes silver- zinc batteries (129 volts -@ 24ah). The "Spirit of Biel" turned in a flawless performance finishing first in the solar category. The vehicle recently won the Australian Solar Challenge, finishing one day ahead of the nearest competitor. Another very impressive solarelectric vehicle was the M.I.T. (5X). Computer analysis determined that the onboard solar array was losing more energy due to drag than it was producing electrical power so the cells were disassembled and placed in the vehicle since the race rules required that they be onboard. An exciting moment occurred for everyone when the car blew a tire at high speed and did a 360ø in the turn. That evening at the driver meeting track officials expressed some degree of relief that this had proven the safety of solar cars. The Mauro Solarelectric was a study in what can be accomplished in a limited amount of time. When I arrived at the track on Thursday I noticed what looked like the beginning of a chassis. On Friday the vehicle had evolved considerably. It seemed like every time I passed by the garage area the vehicle was more complete. By Saturday it was competing on the track. What an inspiration for hands-on folks. The Electric Cars There was quiet a variety of equipment and strategies in the electric car class. The very advanced Honda CRX was sponsored by Southern California Edison Cop[nay and Arizona Public Service Company (APS) and was designed by Dreisbach Electromotive Inc. (DEMI) of Santa Barbara. Utilizing a DEMI zinc-air battery it won the event and set new records with sustained speeds of 62 miles per hour and traveled 108 miles in two hours. This zinc-air battery technology is able to carry up to eight times the energy of other batteries of comparable weight and uses "environmentally friendly" materials.. Besides the DEMI zinc-air battery pack the vehicle also uses a nickel-cadmium battery pack for passing and sprints above 65 mph. In an actual 1991 test, 215 miles at a nominal 45 mph was observed. APS feels that the new zinc-air battery allows electric vehicles to approach gasoline powered vehicles performance and represents a major step towards putting non-polluting electric vehicles on the road. DEMI plans to continue research on the battery and hopes that a U.S. or Japanese auto manufacturer will be interested in the manufacture of the battery. Solectria's two entries looked good and performed flawlessly. Although they started in eighth and tenth position they finished second and fifth competing 104 and 84 laps respectively. James Worden has been working at producing practical electric and solarelectric vehicles for awhile and it's great to see his success. Michael Hackleman (to many of us one of the Grandfathers of electric vehicles) brought a resurrected Dept. of Energy car (a 1982 Ford Fairmont station wagon) which became known as the "lead sled" and used a very innovative ten minute (pit stop) recharging technique. As I watched from the pits Michael's' #27 car pulled in and up to a pallet of charged batteries. Battery covers were removed from the vehicle, a quick connect was plugged in and presto, the quick charge was happening! I noticed one of the crew members poised with cable cutters around one battery series interconnect and I began to refer to him as the "manual circuit breaker". The recharge technique worked well and Michael and team placed sixth. One vehicle on display with particular interest for me was the Doran #43, a build-it-yourself vehicle composed of wood and fiberglass. Although this vehicle wasn't allowed to compete in the Electric 200, it was allowed to use the track during practice/qualifying and turned in an impressive 66 miles per hour. Plans for building a Doran are available and body part kits will be available this summer. Overall, the Electric 200 demonstrated that efficient practical, and less polluting electric vehicles are appropriate for the needs of most people. Consider that 90% of our driving is usually trips of 25 miles or less. The rest of the show Other events were held in conjunction with the S & E 500. The environmental expo was open to the public for all three days of the event. Electric vehicles were on display and environmental and government organizations provided information on solar energy and ways that people can reduce the amount of energy that they use for transportation. The Junior Solar Spirit is an annual, national event involving seventh and eight grade students and is intended to stimulate interest in service and engineering. Awards were presented for innovative design and overall performance. Students build solar model cars as class projects and compete against other schools. The finals are to be held in Washington, DC. The "Kids Mini Solar & Electric 500's" was an event for 2-6 year olds with qualifying events held at Phoenix area supermarket parking lots. The twelve solar and electric mini cars saw speeds of 2-4 mph on a 30 foot long race track. Participants and their families received free tickets to the Solar and Electric 500. Friday was Education Day at the raceway and was described as the worlds largest science class. Arizona schools (grades 5 through high school) were invited to the track so that students could witness solar and electric vehicle technology in action. Teachers were provided with educational materials on solar power to prepare the students for the event. Perspectives I must admit that I have some mixed feelings whenever "solar" and "racing" are used in the same sentence. Americans love affair with fast, competitive vehicles might mean that calling something a "race" is a way to bring people in to re-educate them and share a vision of quiet, non- polluting vehicles. If people are to have an objective in transportation, it shouldn't be how fast can I get from point A to point B, but rather for my REAL transportation needs , how can I get there consuming the least amount of the Earth's limited resources in the process. Let's face it, in our culture it is very easy to become fascinated with any number of new exciting technologies, but lets choose technology that is compatible with survival of the planet. I believe that the Solar and Electric 500 was a display of that technology. See you at SEER 91! Access Author: John Takes, 1258 North Main St., Unit B2B, Fort Bragg, CA 95437. John is the owner of Burkhardt Turbines and a partner in Suntools. He is presently converting gasoline vehicles to electric power.