Experience shows that many of those involved in developing prototypes easily find employment afterward
vestnikstroitel.bg
Protecting the lives and health of people involved in road traffic is of paramount importance to countries worldwide. In Bulgaria, steps are being taken in this direction, but despite this, our country continues to rank among the top in Europe with the highest number of road fatalities. To contribute to achieving the socially significant goal of fewer traffic accidents and casualties in our country, the newspaper "Stroitel" and the Bulgarian Industry Association "Road Safety" (BIAR) launched a joint column titled "Road Safety." This column addresses road safety issues, highlights current trends and best practices in the field, and examines the losses caused by traffic accidents. A key topic is achieving "Vision Zero" – an integrated approach with the primary goal of ZERO fatalities in road traffic accidents! In the column of the newspaper "Stroitel" and BIAR, we also present interviews with participants in the online show "Vision 0," which is broadcast on the BIAR "Road Safety" YouTube channel. The full conversations can be viewed in a special section on the website www.vestnikstroitel.bg. In this issue, we introduce you to Assoc. Prof. Plamen Punov, a lecturer in the Department of "Engines, Automotive Engineering and Transport" at the Technical University of Sofia. Assoc. Prof. Punov is the captain of the team that developed an electric car for participation in the international Shell Eco-marathon competition.
Assoc. Prof. Punov, please tell us about the competition Shell Eco-marathon?
This is an international competition in which student and school teams participate. Its main goal is for students to develop energy-efficient cars that, during the competition itself, must cover a distance of approximately 16 km, with each attempt aiming for minimal energy consumption. The competition features two main car categories. The first is the urban type, which has technical requirements that vehicles must include standard car elements – four wheels, headlights, turn signals, brake lights, horn, etc. The other category consists of prototypes – significantly smaller cars whose purpose is to demonstrate the limits of energy efficiency. Within each of these two categories, there are different propulsion sources – vehicles can be equipped with conventional internal combustion engines, be electric, battery-powered, or hydrogen fuel cell-powered.
There are three major competitions. One of them, in which we also participate, is in Europe. The other two are in America and Asia. At the end, there is a joint competition among the winners of the three races, which was held in Europe for many years, but in 2024 it will be in Asia for the first time.
What is the car you have developed? What fuel does it run on?
The main requirement is that the car should have as few ready-made components from existing vehicles as possible. Most of them must be developed by students to apply their knowledge in practice. Our team has existed since 2008. Over the past time, with very few exceptions, we have participated annually in the major competitions. Over the years, the team has competed in different categories. I have been its leader since 2015. Initially, my predecessors started with the first attempt using an internal combustion engine. Then they moved to a purely electric car with a battery, and since 2011, almost without exception and to date, we have been competing in the category of electric vehicles powered by hydrogen fuel cells. In these vehicles, the electricity needed for propulsion is produced from hydrogen via the electrochemical fuel cell element on board the car itself. That is, this is one of the existing technologies that is also considered CO2 neutral, and it is developing in parallel with battery-powered electric vehicles.
I think no one can say what the future will be, because most likely both technologies will continue to develop in parallel. Those with batteries are much more accessible, as they practically do not require particularly expensive and complex infrastructure for charging. Whereas hydrogen cars require quite complex and still expensive charging technology.
Is there great interest from your students in participating in this competition and in creating such prototypes?
Interest is mainly shown by students studying specialties related to cars, transport engineering, as well as the entire spectrum of specialists in the field of electronics, computer engineers. The project is interesting because it gives them the opportunity not only to apply their knowledge but also to compete with their future competitors in the labor market in the automotive industry, i.e., engineers from Western universities in Europe. They can also work on a real project before graduating. It is not excluded that they may also meet their future employers, as the main support for this project comes from companies in the automotive industry in Bulgaria. Experience shows that a large part of the students who participate in the development of prototypes easily find work afterwards.
How does a competition actually proceed?
Every year, the competition in which all teams participate lasts about a week. The first stage is the technical inspection. The cars must meet certain requirements set by the organizers. These technical inspections have different directions, related to the car's design, its safety, the safety of its drive system, etc.
The race consists of several stages. First, there are a few days for training, so the teams can test their cars, adjust various systems, check their fuel consumption under real conditions, and refine their racing strategy depending on the specifics of the track. The last days are actually the competitive ones. All teams from both categories – city type and prototypes – go out on the track during the same period. I will clarify that it is not like speed races in Formula 1, meaning we do not compete against other teams; the driver of each team drives according to their own strategy. But of course, there are other cars on the track, so they sometimes influence each other and even require a change in strategy.
The competition takes place on closed tracks, with the city type category necessarily simulating movement in an urban environment.
What are your current standings?
Throughout the team's history, we have three second places, one third, and one fourth. This year we finished fifth, so I would say we are among the leaders in our category.
What do you foresee for the future?
Only in 2024 did we manage to extract the maximum potential of the last car we designed in 2019. One of the important elements for low fuel consumption is the mass of the vehicle. To achieve the desired structural strength with minimal mass, it is entirely made of carbon fiber, so-called carbon. We are proud that all its elements were made by students at TU - Sofia. After achieving a relatively good result with it, we are already working on the next car. But it is at the conceptual design stage, and we plan to conduct aerodynamic tests this year. Our goal is to reduce air resistance. I assume that in 2-3 years it could be ready for competition.
vestnikstroitel.bg, 22.05.2024
Protecting the lives and health of people involved in road traffic is of paramount importance to countries worldwide. In Bulgaria, steps are being taken in this direction, but despite this, our country continues to rank among the top in Europe with the highest number of road fatalities. To contribute to achieving the socially significant goal of fewer traffic accidents and casualties in our country, the newspaper "Stroitel" and the Bulgarian Industry Association "Road Safety" (BIAR) launched a joint column titled "Road Safety." This column addresses road safety issues, highlights current trends and best practices in the field, and examines the losses caused by traffic accidents. A key topic is achieving "Vision Zero" – an integrated approach with the primary goal of ZERO fatalities in road traffic accidents! In the column of the newspaper "Stroitel" and BIAR, we also present interviews with participants in the online show "Vision 0," which is broadcast on the BIAR "Road Safety" YouTube channel. The full conversations can be viewed in a special section on the website www.vestnikstroitel.bg. In this issue, we introduce you to Assoc. Prof. Plamen Punov, a lecturer in the Department of "Engines, Automotive Engineering and Transport" at the Technical University of Sofia. Assoc. Prof. Punov is the captain of the team that developed an electric car for participation in the international Shell Eco-marathon competition.
Assoc. Prof. Punov, please tell us about the competition Shell Eco-marathon?
This is an international competition in which student and school teams participate. Its main goal is for students to develop energy-efficient cars that, during the competition itself, must cover a distance of approximately 16 km, with each attempt aiming for minimal energy consumption. The competition features two main car categories. The first is the urban type, which has technical requirements that vehicles must include standard car elements – four wheels, headlights, turn signals, brake lights, horn, etc. The other category consists of prototypes – significantly smaller cars whose purpose is to demonstrate the limits of energy efficiency. Within each of these two categories, there are different propulsion sources – vehicles can be equipped with conventional internal combustion engines, be electric, battery-powered, or hydrogen fuel cell-powered.
There are three major competitions. One of them, in which we also participate, is in Europe. The other two are in America and Asia. At the end, there is a joint competition among the winners of the three races, which was held in Europe for many years, but in 2024 it will be in Asia for the first time.
What is the car you have developed? What fuel does it run on?
The main requirement is that the car should have as few ready-made components from existing vehicles as possible. Most of them must be developed by students to apply their knowledge in practice. Our team has existed since 2008. Over the past time, with very few exceptions, we have participated annually in the major competitions. Over the years, the team has competed in different categories. I have been its leader since 2015. Initially, my predecessors started with the first attempt using an internal combustion engine. Then they moved to a purely electric car with a battery, and since 2011, almost without exception and to date, we have been competing in the category of electric vehicles powered by hydrogen fuel cells. In these vehicles, the electricity needed for propulsion is produced from hydrogen via the electrochemical fuel cell element on board the car itself. That is, this is one of the existing technologies that is also considered CO2 neutral, and it is developing in parallel with battery-powered electric vehicles.
I think no one can say what the future will be, because most likely both technologies will continue to develop in parallel. Those with batteries are much more accessible, as they practically do not require particularly expensive and complex infrastructure for charging. Whereas hydrogen cars require quite complex and still expensive charging technology.
Is there great interest from your students in participating in this competition and in creating such prototypes?
Interest is mainly shown by students studying specialties related to cars, transport engineering, as well as the entire spectrum of specialists in the field of electronics, computer engineers. The project is interesting because it gives them the opportunity not only to apply their knowledge but also to compete with their future competitors in the labor market in the automotive industry, i.e., engineers from Western universities in Europe. They can also work on a real project before graduating. It is not excluded that they may also meet their future employers, as the main support for this project comes from companies in the automotive industry in Bulgaria. Experience shows that a large part of the students who participate in the development of prototypes easily find work afterwards.
How does a competition actually proceed?
Every year, the competition in which all teams participate lasts about a week. The first stage is the technical inspection. The cars must meet certain requirements set by the organizers. These technical inspections have different directions, related to the car's design, its safety, the safety of its drive system, etc.
The race consists of several stages. First, there are a few days for training, so the teams can test their cars, adjust various systems, check their fuel consumption under real conditions, and refine their racing strategy depending on the specifics of the track. The last days are actually the competitive ones. All teams from both categories – city type and prototypes – go out on the track during the same period. I will clarify that it is not like speed races in Formula 1, meaning we do not compete against other teams; the driver of each team drives according to their own strategy. But of course, there are other cars on the track, so they sometimes influence each other and even require a change in strategy.
The competition takes place on closed tracks, with the city type category necessarily simulating movement in an urban environment.
What are your current standings?
Throughout the team's history, we have three second places, one third, and one fourth. This year we finished fifth, so I would say we are among the leaders in our category.
What do you foresee for the future?
Only in 2024 did we manage to extract the maximum potential of the last car we designed in 2019. One of the important elements for low fuel consumption is the mass of the vehicle. To achieve the desired structural strength with minimal mass, it is entirely made of carbon fiber, so-called carbon. We are proud that all its elements were made by students at TU - Sofia. After achieving a relatively good result with it, we are already working on the next car. But it is at the conceptual design stage, and we plan to conduct aerodynamic tests this year. Our goal is to reduce air resistance. I assume that in 2-3 years it could be ready for competition.
vestnikstroitel.bg, 22.05.2024
