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Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology’s Efficient Vehicles Team continues to live up to its name, posting an all-time best 1,631 miles
per gallon to have the top performance by a U.S. college at this year’s Society of Automotive Engineers’ Supermileage competition on June 5-6 at the Eaton Proving
Grounds near Marshall, Mich.
Overall, Rose-Hulman placed second to Canada’s Universite Laval (3,169 mpg) in the collegiate division and received the Best Demonstrated
Overall Team Attitude Award. Ecole De Technologie Superieure, another Canadian team, was third (1,319 mpg). The annual competition had 22 teams from
throughout the U.S., Canada, Puerto Rico and India.
Rose-Hulman’s team overcame 90-degree temperatures, harsh humidity and problems with the fuel system to post the top U.S. finish.
The team’s final run on the track was aborted because of a late afternoon thunderstorm that hit the race course.
The hot temperatures were especially challenging to driver Katherine Snider, a 2008 mechanical engineering graduate. The vehicle has a clear body cover,
exposing the driver to the sunny skies, and little internal ventilation. Snider also laid flat on her back while steering the car by adjusting independent
front wheel mechanisms.
“As always, it was a pleasure to work with these students. They spend a lot of time helping other teams by loaning equipment and supplies, as well as offering
technical advice to other colleges that were new to the Supermileage competition,” stated the team’s faculty advisor Allen White, assistant professor of mechanical
engineering. “The students’ selflessness and spirit
of fairness in competition earned them the Best Overall Team Attitude award.”
Joining Snider at the SAE competition were team president John Cergnul, a senior mechanical engineering major; secretary Blake Lin, a senior mechanical engineering
major; and Aren Thompson, a senior mechanical engineering major.
“John, Aren and Blake spent a great deal of time tuning the
engine Thursday night and Katie endured hours inside of the car on a tremendously hot, sunny day without complaint,” observed White. “It is a joy to work
with these students. They exemplify the best of Rose-Hulman students: dedicated, spirited and selfless.”
Rose-Hulman’s team includes 15 students majoring in mechanical engineering, chemical engineering, biomedical engineering, civil engineering and physics.
The SAE Supermileage competition provides students with a challenging design project that involves the development and construction of a fuel-efficient vehicle.
The REV project gives Rose-Hulman students the opportunity to learn about vehicle development and design, along with increasing public awareness about fuel economy.
Vehicles are powered by a small, one-cylinder, four-cycle engine, provided by Briggs & Stratton. Significant engine modifications are allowed. Rose-Hulman’s
team has added a head piston and camshaft from a Honda XR50 engine, along with a specially designed electric fuel injection system.
Rose-Hulman’s three-wheeled vehicle has a lightweight body made from carbon fiber, with honeycombed Nomex core and aluminum framing, covered with a clear PETG
body shell. The vehicle is eight feet and four inches long, 26 inches wide and travels 1.25 inches off the ground.
Other U.S. colleges passing the Supermileage competition’s vehicle inspections and competing in this year’s races included University of Akron, Arkansas Tech,
Binghamton University (New York), California State University-Los Angeles, Cedarville University (Ohio), University of Massachusetts-Amherst, Michigan Tech, Northern Arizona, University of Tulsa
and Youngstown State University. Foreign competitors included Rayat Institute of Engineering Information Tech (India), Delphi College
of Engineering (India), Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico, University of Toronto (Canada) and University of Windsor (Canada).
The Efficient Vehicles Team is part of Rose-Hulman's Advanced Transportation System initiative. For more about the team and SAE competitions visit
http://www.rose-hulman.edu/RHEV/ and http://students.sae.org/competitions/supermileage/about.htm.
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