Autorickshaw Demonstration Project – an international experience!

If you were at Innovation Park last August, you might be excused if you thought you had been transported to a different part of the globe!  With the cooperation of the Novelis Global Technology Centre, a test strip was devised to test the performance of an autorickshaw recently imported from India.  This three wheeled vehicle, commonly used as a taxi in that country, came equipped with a small diesel engine and not much else.
The “Autorick” is a bare bones means of conveyance and isn’t designed to do much more than getting people from point A to point B efficiently. They are also the source of a large proportion of the smog forming emissions in many large Asian cities.

Paul Lofink, a Fourth Year student in Physics & Engineering from Germany was at Queen’s University for a few months on an I.A.E.S.T.E. (International Association for the Exchange of Students for Technical Experience) program.  Working with Dr. Brian Surgenor, Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Associate Dean, Engineering and Applied Science (Research), and Dr. Brant Peppley, Professor of Chemical Engineering and Director of the Queen’s-RMC Fuel Cell Research Centre, Paul was responsible for putting the vehicle through its paces and collecting its performance data, primarily its acceleration characteristics.

The overall purpose of the project was to measure vehicle speed and acceleration and to determine its fuel consumption data using the small diesel engine.  The next phase of the project will be to implement a hybrid fuel system (Fuel Cell) that will meet or exceed those characteristics using less energy.  Paul did not see this part of the project, as his exchange ended late August; fortunately he received a high sense of accomplishment knowing that his efforts directly contributed to advancing Fuel Cell research.

With contributions from Hydrogenics and CEV (Canadian Electric Vehicles, Ltd.), this project represents one more step on the path to advancing wider-spread use of Fuel Cell powered vehicles.