The Hydrogen Motorsport ChallengeMr David Bascombe Jr.Mr Tomás ColemanMr Mark DouglasMr Stéphane Folio

Mr Georgios KalogeropoulosMr Naman NegiMr Robin PernetMr Chris Senn

www.motorsport.cranfield.ac.ukSchool of Applied Sciences, Cranfield University, Bedfordshire, MK43 0ALEmail: motorsport@cranfield.ac.uk

SummaryStorage & DeliveryHydrogen benefits from a high energy density compared to gasoline, even though its storage is not as straightforward.The implemented storage features:•Gaseous storage;• High pressure vessels (700 bar);• Type IV storage: polymeric liner and carbon fiber structure;• 3.5kg distributed over 2 vessels

The pressure is regulated at 20 bar to safely deliver the gas to the engine common rail.Other safety equipment:• Pressure sensors & atmospheric hydrogen

sensors• Electronic shutoff valves & control unit with

autonomous energy supply• LED safety display system

EngineA twin turbocharged, direct injection Ford Ecoboost 3.5L V6 engine is used. The engine has been modified in order to run with gaseous hydrogen instead of gasoline and has been simulated in AVL Boost.A lean Air-Fuel Ratio (AFR) of 75:1 (λ = 2.18) has been chosen to prevent pre-ignition and excessive NOx emissions.Other modifications implemented:• Custom hybrid turbochargers• Compression ratio of 12:1• Gaseous injectors• Cold-rated, non-platinum tipped

spark plugs• Pneumatic Variable Valve Timing

ChassisKey challenges for the chassis design:• Redesign to accomodate

hydrogen storage tanks• Provide a protective rigid structure for safety under crash/impact• Optimise the weight and inertia and target baseline torsional and bending

stiffnesses• Avoid protrusion in the hydrogen storage area in side impact scenario• Comply with side crash based on Euro-NCAP® regulations

• Inclusion of a single-piece firewall to isolate the cabin from the fuel storage

solution.

T45 steel material is used in the front and rear roll-hoop to improve chassis stiffness.

BackgroundWith the advent of the hydrogen economy, when the use of fuel cells and e-powertrains are commonplace, the safety and packaging issues these technologies bring may pose issues to the motorsport industry. The solution to bridge the gap between gasoline Spark Ignition (SI) engines and new powertrain may present itself as a Hydrogen SI engine.

Aim & ObjectivesThe project focused on designing the chassis and modifying the engine of the Radical RXC to race safely with a hydrogen powered combustion engine. The chassis must retain the RXC safety standards whilst accomodating the alternative fuel storage, meanwhile the engine should be modified to deliver the best performance and limit the fuel consumption.

Cargine® pneumatic VVT actuator

The gusseted section to improve directional stiffness.

Double-tube design:

• +18.7% longitudinal bending stiffness

• +66% lateral bending stiffness

• +5% weight increase

3.39kg of H2*

3.15kg of H2*

*Based on numeric simulation**Estimated values based on 2012 US EPA values

19 laps

13 laps

£12,000 for storage system

£2,200 for the delivery system

£3.71 to refuel**

Problem definition

&Constraint

identifiCation

baseline

modelling

& assessments

literature review

modifiCation

innovation

ProduCtion deCision

design oPtimisation

Power: 258 kW (347 bhp) @ 6,000 rpmTorque: 446 N.m @ 5,000 rpm

BSFC: 67 g/kWh @ 5,000 rpm

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