Solar car Green Falcon takes off for Australia

The Green Falcon, the solar car of Groningen’s Top Dutch Solar Racing team, will depart for Australia in early July to compete in the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge. In the workshop, team members are putting the finishing touches on the car. ‘We’re working around the clock – everyone is passionate about making sure everything is ready on time.’

The scene in the Top Dutch Solar Racing workshop, which is located behind the ENTRANCE building on the Zernike Campus, is one of organized chaos. Before long, the team of Groningen students will be sending their solar car off to Australia. Julliette Evers, the team’s marketing manager and a student at Hanze University of Applied Sciences, is busy packing large orange boxes on the floor. ‘It’s a bit messy, but it’s not always like this,’ she apologizes. ‘It’s important for us to pack everything carefully. Anything we forget now will have to go in personal luggage or be shipped to Australia separately. We obviously want to avoid that.’

These are the final days for getting everything in order in the Netherlands. A long to-do list is hanging on a board in the office. ‘We’re working around the clock. Some team members practically live here. Everyone is passionate about making sure that everything is ready on time.’ This is apparently not an exaggeration. A mattress has even been placed in an adjacent room for team members in need of a short power nap. ‘We’re still working on some parts of the car. The date of the race was moved forward, and so we have almost two months less time to prepare. It’s insane how much of a difference that makes. Sometimes, we have to solve things in a way that looks a bit like The Three Stooges,’ she laughs.

Leaving nothing to chance

At the same time, the technology in the students’ workshop is impressive. Over the past year, the ‘mechies’ (mechanics) and ‘sparkies’ (electricians) have been using advanced machinery to work on the Green Falcon solar car. The solar panels are stored in a sealed room, where temperature and humidity are kept as low as possible. The students use this climate control as a way to prevent the sensitive solar cells from losing capacity. They leave nothing to chance. Several hundred metres away, they have been working all year on the battery pack. ‘We wanted to be on the safe side; people also work with hydrogen here on campus. We definitely don’t want any accidents with batteries nearby,’ she explains.

A month ago, the students presented their solar car, the Green Falcon, to the general public for the first time – right in the middle of the Grote Markt in Groningen. The crowd saw the unique catamaran design, which provides extra stability and space for solar panels. Evers notes that the remarkable car attracted a lot of attention. ‘We were able to showcase the Green Falcon to friends, family, and partner companies, but even passersby showed great interest.’

Artificial intelligence

Timo Jolman, a third-year Bachelor’s student of Artificial Intelligence at the University of Groningen, is one of the team’s two Race Strategists. He explains, ‘We will create models of the car’s performance, showing how much power we’re using at certain speeds and how much we’re generating under different weather conditions.’ These models will be built using data that the team will collect in Australia during the ‘Trip Up’: the five-day journey from the finish line back to the starting point for the race. ‘The methods we’ll use to train the model with these data include machine learning, and so the quality of the data is extremely important.’ His field of study, Artificial Intelligence, plays a crucial role in this process.

During the race, Jolman, together with fellow strategist Lorenzo Zambelli (Applied Mathematics), will be in the support car following the Green Falcon. ‘There, we will decide how fast the driver can go. Because the leading teams will be only 10 to 20 minutes apart, it will be crucial for us to maintain the highest possible average speed.’

Jolman feels the adventure in Australia fits well with his studies. ‘I’m now able to apply a lot of what I’ve learned.’ He also helps out with other tasks. ‘We build the car together. If needed, anyone can step in’. He relates that the project both enriches and adds depth to his studies. ‘We’re working on a practical application. In addition, we meet many specialists, like the data analysts from a pension fund who have helped us. This expands our network. And, yes, 10 days in the outback is obviously a blast as well.’

Motor for Innovation

In early July, the Green Falcon will be flown to Australia – a logistical challenge of the highest order. A week later, after a short break, the students will also head ‘Down Under’. ‘That short break is necessary, so that everyone will arrive fresh in Australia,’ explains Evers. Once there, the students will have nearly two months to prepare their car for the race. The schedule includes long test runs during the ‘Trip Up’ and the ‘scrutineering’ – the technical inspection before the race. After that, the World Solar Challenge will begin.

Evers dares not say whether we will all be driving solar cars in the future. Nevertheless, the solar race is an important motor for innovation within the sustainable automotive industry. ‘With every edition, the rules are adjusted to keep challenging the teams. Innovation never stops. Ultimately, it’s all about making a car as efficient as possible’.

The Bridgestone World Solar Challenge starts on 24 August. The race covers 3,000 kilometres from Darwin, across the Australian outback, to the finish line in Adelaide.

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