A total of 118 teams of students from schools and universities in 17 countries in the Asia-Pacific region, Middle East and Australia came together for the seventh edition of Shell Eco-marathon Asia, which took place in Manila, Philippines from March 3-6.
The event, part of a larger student innovation competition including the Americas and Europe, attracted around 30,000 visitors and saw students set four new mileage records. It was the third and final Shell Eco-marathon to be held in the city. The location of the 2017 event will be announced soon .
This year’s youngest participants were 16 year-olds from the City of Bogo Science and Arts Academy in the Philippines. They designed their carbon-fibre car in the form of a raindrop, one of the most aerodynamic shapes.
How little energy?
Shell Eco-marathon sees teams compete in two categories to drive the longest distance with the smallest amount of energy.
In the Prototype category, drivers squeeze into low-slung cars, lying on their backs. In the UrbanConcept category, cars look more familiar, sometimes with several seats. Built for the real world, their extra weight can make them less fuel-efficient than Prototype cars, but they are still able to achieve impressive results.
Competitors use a range of fuels – from hydrogen and battery power, to traditional fuels as well as alternatives such as ethanol – to power their cars. Technical experts at the event calculate how far they could travel on the equivalent of a single litre of gasoline.
First-time participants Team HVCT from the Ho Chi Minh Vocational College of Technology, Vietnam, and Team The Imirates Falcon from the Higher Colleges of Technology – Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, were among the earliest to clear the rigorous technical inspection with their Prototype gasoline cars.
“We initially faced challenges with our fuel system, but we managed to pass technical inspection on our second attempt, which we felt was a miracle,” said Pham Hong Thang of Team HVCT.
