KU Ecohawks
Encyclopedia
The University of Kansas
Sustainable Automotive Energy Infrastructure Initiative, or more commonly referred to as the KU
Ecohawks (short for Eco
friendly
Jay
hawks
) is an ongoing project that works to promote sustainability
in the automotive sector
. Founded during the beginning of the Automotive industry crisis of 2008–2010 in the US, the group recycles old vehicles to run on community wastes and renewables
, especially on the University of Kansas
campus (and adjoining localities) and not rely on conventional fossil fuel sources that pollute the local and global environment.
met to organize a new project recognized by the School of Engineering
which builds efficient community cars that run primarily on renewable energy sources. By August, the team added 6 more members to start the Fall Semester. Depcik worked with both General Motors Company and Ford Motor Company
in Detroit. They picked an old non functioning car from a dump, which was meant to be destroyed and sold in scraps and recycled it into a series hybrid that ran on biodiesel made from used cooking oil from the campus dormitories. Later this was presented to a board saying that the car would get 500 MPG which generated great media attention. It was a media stunt, and the car ended up getting 54 MPG. Moreover, the recycle of the vehicle itself prevented the release of a few tons of carbon to the atmosphere. They ran the car on different feedstock like ethanol, biodiesel and electricity and stressed efficiency over performance, as noted by co-founder Louis McKown in 2008. In 2009, another co-founder, Sunny Sanwar in an exhibition said that the point of the initiative is trying to get people to think about how 'inefficient' the auto industry is. In May, 2009, Ford Motor Company
President and CEO Alan Mulally
visited the School of Engineering and talked with the students regarding the auto industry and answered questions about the technological, financial, cultural and political realities facing Ford.
The Ecohawks group is one of the largest and most promising initiatives of the University of Kansas
and was funded and sponsored by highly efficient automotive car company Aptera Motors, The Coca-Cola Company
, Daimler Trucks North America
, Grundfos
, Yokohama Rubber Company
and
Black & Veatch among others, at various stages.
Design and Hybrid
Architecture
The team then constructed a plug-in series hybrid electric vehicle. The batteries on-board were refilled using a biodiesel generator; conversely, it could be plugged into any typical wall socket found in homes. The team also built a solar energy filling station on campus consisting of six 180W panels that allowed recharging the car batteries in half a day while it is parked. Cars typically reached 40 mph around campus while the fuel economy
was increased to 80 mpge
due to solar refilling. The team uses combinations of different fuel sources each year.
On a much smaller scale the Ecohawks group researched advanced technologies in the small scale including NiMH, LiCoO2
, LiFePO4
batteries. The utilized scaled down RC Cars for testing and validation. Research also conceptualized a parallel hybrid design that utilized a small internal combustion engine
running on the a planned biodiesel blend and a brushless electric motor allowing for the doubling of torque. Research with ECM
, hydrogen fuel cells and Metal hydride storage tanks led to the United States Environmental Protection Agency
(US EPA) grant that wanted to see the group design an infrastructure with Smart grid technologies. The initiatives were supported by National Instruments
, while the neighborhood EV
was a 1974 Volkswagen Beetle
In an article by Wired magazine
it was estimated that profits, both financial and societal was possible if the ecohawks project was replicated on a larger scale
The ecohawks also proposed a plan to take the vehicles completely off grid. They installed six monocrystalline solar cells
on their workspace and charged the cars from it, with no energy taken from the grid. Their workspace does not have an HVAC
system, but uses biodiesel
space heater. In addition, all small appliances are powered by solar energy. Later the group formulated a plan to make money from selling excess energy generated from the integrated renewable energy systems and optimizing the uses through a smart grid technology, i.e. the car would be a power plant by itself. Considering a finite range for an electric vehicle, and estimating that only a fraction is used for daily purposes, looking at the statistic for Kansas, the team proposed that they could potentially use wind energy at night to charge the battery pack.
During the day, a plug in solar carport would be constructed and depending on the needs of the electric grid, power can be drawn from the solar carport and from the vehicle battery pack to augment, or even completely supply the grid. Keeping enough charge for the car to get home, the consumer of the EV would actually be able to profit by giving the excess miles during the day as a supply to the grid. This process was showcased to the US EPA in Washington DC in 2010. In February 2011, city officials of Lawrence, Douglas County
declared that the University would be getting an electric car charging station. The group made the first unofficial charging station in May 2010.
Education Programs (K-12)
The group hosts and organizes various education programs and projects for the surrounding schools.
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
Sustainable Automotive Energy Infrastructure Initiative, or more commonly referred to as the KU
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
Ecohawks (short for Eco
Environmentally friendly
Environmentally friendly are terms used to refer to goods and services, laws, guidelines and policies claimed to inflict minimal or no harm on the environment....
friendly
Environmentally friendly
Environmentally friendly are terms used to refer to goods and services, laws, guidelines and policies claimed to inflict minimal or no harm on the environment....
Jay
Kansas Jayhawks
The sports teams at the University of Kansas are known as the Jayhawks. They are one of three schools in the state of Kansas that participate in NCAA Division I. The Jayhawks are also a member of the Big 12 Conference...
hawks
Kansas Jayhawks
The sports teams at the University of Kansas are known as the Jayhawks. They are one of three schools in the state of Kansas that participate in NCAA Division I. The Jayhawks are also a member of the Big 12 Conference...
) is an ongoing project that works to promote sustainability
Sustainability
Sustainability is the capacity to endure. For humans, sustainability is the long-term maintenance of well being, which has environmental, economic, and social dimensions, and encompasses the concept of union, an interdependent relationship and mutual responsible position with all living and non...
in the automotive sector
Automobile
An automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
. Founded during the beginning of the Automotive industry crisis of 2008–2010 in the US, the group recycles old vehicles to run on community wastes and renewables
Renewable energy
Renewable energy is energy which comes from natural resources such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, and geothermal heat, which are renewable . About 16% of global final energy consumption comes from renewables, with 10% coming from traditional biomass, which is mainly used for heating, and 3.4% from...
, especially on the University of Kansas
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
campus (and adjoining localities) and not rely on conventional fossil fuel sources that pollute the local and global environment.
Background
In February 2008, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Assistant Professor, Christopher Depcik and a group of 5 engineering students from the University of KansasUniversity of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
met to organize a new project recognized by the School of Engineering
University of Kansas School of Engineering
The University of Kansas School of Engineering, founded in 1891 is the is the oldest Engineering School in the State of Kansas, although engineering degrees were awarded as early as 1873. It is an ABET accredited, public engineering school located on the main campus of the University of Kansas in...
which builds efficient community cars that run primarily on renewable energy sources. By August, the team added 6 more members to start the Fall Semester. Depcik worked with both General Motors Company and Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
in Detroit. They picked an old non functioning car from a dump, which was meant to be destroyed and sold in scraps and recycled it into a series hybrid that ran on biodiesel made from used cooking oil from the campus dormitories. Later this was presented to a board saying that the car would get 500 MPG which generated great media attention. It was a media stunt, and the car ended up getting 54 MPG. Moreover, the recycle of the vehicle itself prevented the release of a few tons of carbon to the atmosphere. They ran the car on different feedstock like ethanol, biodiesel and electricity and stressed efficiency over performance, as noted by co-founder Louis McKown in 2008. In 2009, another co-founder, Sunny Sanwar in an exhibition said that the point of the initiative is trying to get people to think about how 'inefficient' the auto industry is. In May, 2009, Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
President and CEO Alan Mulally
Alan Mulally
Alan Roger Mulally is an American engineer and business executive who is currently the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Ford Motor Company...
visited the School of Engineering and talked with the students regarding the auto industry and answered questions about the technological, financial, cultural and political realities facing Ford.
The Ecohawks group is one of the largest and most promising initiatives of the University of Kansas
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
and was funded and sponsored by highly efficient automotive car company Aptera Motors, The Coca-Cola Company
The Coca-Cola Company
The Coca-Cola Company is an American multinational beverage corporation and manufacturer, retailer and marketer of non-alcoholic beverage concentrates and syrups. The company is best known for its flagship product Coca-Cola, invented in 1886 by pharmacist John Stith Pemberton in Columbus, Georgia...
, Daimler Trucks North America
Freightliner Trucks
Freightliner Trucks is an American manufacturer of heavy duty trucks, chassis and semi-trailer trucks in the United States. The company was founded as Freightliner Inc in 1942 and is now a division of Daimler Trucks North America, a subsidiary of the German Daimler AG...
, Grundfos
Grundfos
Grundfos is one of the world's largest pump manufacturer, based in Denmark with more than 18,000 employees globally. The annual production of more than 12 million pump units, circulator pumps , submersible pumps , and centrifugal pumps is approximately 50% of the world market for these pumps...
, Yokohama Rubber Company
Yokohama Rubber Company
is a tire company based in Tokyo, Japan. The company founded and started in 1917 in a joint venture between Yokohama Cable Manufacturing and B.F. Goodrich. In 1969 the company expanded to the United States as Yokohama Tire Corporation. The Aspec A300 was the driving force behind its tremendous...
and
Black & Veatch among others, at various stages.
Design and Hybrid
Hybrid electric vehicle
A hybrid electric vehicle is a type of hybrid vehicle and electric vehicle which combines a conventional internal combustion engine propulsion system with an electric propulsion system. The presence of the electric powertrain is intended to achieve either better fuel economy than a conventional...
Architecture
The team then constructed a plug-in series hybrid electric vehicle. The batteries on-board were refilled using a biodiesel generator; conversely, it could be plugged into any typical wall socket found in homes. The team also built a solar energy filling station on campus consisting of six 180W panels that allowed recharging the car batteries in half a day while it is parked. Cars typically reached 40 mph around campus while the fuel economy
Fuel economy
Fuel economy may refer to:*Fuel economy in automobiles, refers to the fuel efficiency relationship between distance traveled by an automobile and the amount of fuel consumed*Fuel efficiency in general...
was increased to 80 mpge
Miles per gallon gasoline equivalent
Miles per gallon gasoline equivalent is a measure of the average distance traveled per unit of energy consumed. MPGe is used by the U.S...
due to solar refilling. The team uses combinations of different fuel sources each year.
On a much smaller scale the Ecohawks group researched advanced technologies in the small scale including NiMH, LiCoO2
Lithium cobalt oxide
Lithium cobalt oxide is a chemical compound commonly used in the positive electrodes of lithium-ion batteries. The structure of LiCoO2 is known theoretically and has been confirmed with techniques like x-ray diffraction, electron microscopy, neutron powder diffraction, and EXAFS: it consists of...
, LiFePO4
Lithium iron phosphate battery
The lithium iron phosphate battery, also called LFP battery, is a type of rechargeable battery, specifically a lithium-ion battery, which uses LiFePO4 as a cathode material.-History:...
batteries. The utilized scaled down RC Cars for testing and validation. Research also conceptualized a parallel hybrid design that utilized a small internal combustion engine
Internal combustion engine
The internal combustion engine is an engine in which the combustion of a fuel occurs with an oxidizer in a combustion chamber. In an internal combustion engine, the expansion of the high-temperature and high -pressure gases produced by combustion apply direct force to some component of the engine...
running on the a planned biodiesel blend and a brushless electric motor allowing for the doubling of torque. Research with ECM
Brushless DC electric motor
Brushless DC motors also known as electronically commutated motors are electric motors powered by direct-current electricity and having electronic commutation systems, rather than mechanical commutators and brushes...
, hydrogen fuel cells and Metal hydride storage tanks led to the United States Environmental Protection Agency
United States Environmental Protection Agency
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is an agency of the federal government of the United States charged with protecting human health and the environment, by writing and enforcing regulations based on laws passed by Congress...
(US EPA) grant that wanted to see the group design an infrastructure with Smart grid technologies. The initiatives were supported by National Instruments
National Instruments
National Instruments Corporation, or NI , is an American company with over 5,000 employees and direct operations in 41 countries. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, it is a producer of automated test equipment and virtual instrumentation software...
Community Programs
The groups designs were adopted by the university when the KU Libraries started using vehicles that were converted by the ecohawks. The KU Libraries mail vehicle travelled about 22 miles on average on a given day. The electric vehicle would travels 80 to 90 miles before a recharge. The library car was a Chevrolet K5 BlazerChevrolet K5 Blazer
See also Chevrolet Blazer The K5 Blazer was the smallest full size SUV version of the General Motors C/K Trucks family. Introduced to the Chevrolet line in 1969, the full-size Blazer was replaced in 1995 by the Chevrolet Tahoe. In 1970, GMC introduced its own model of the truck, called the Jimmy,...
, while the neighborhood EV
Electric vehicle
An electric vehicle , also referred to as an electric drive vehicle, uses one or more electric motors or traction motors for propulsion...
was a 1974 Volkswagen Beetle
Volkswagen Beetle
The Volkswagen Type 1, widely known as the Volkswagen Beetle or Volkswagen Bug, is an economy car produced by the German auto maker Volkswagen from 1938 until 2003...
In an article by Wired magazine
Wired (magazine)
Wired is a full-color monthly American magazine and on-line periodical, published since January 1993, that reports on how new and developing technology affects culture, the economy, and politics...
it was estimated that profits, both financial and societal was possible if the ecohawks project was replicated on a larger scale
The ecohawks also proposed a plan to take the vehicles completely off grid. They installed six monocrystalline solar cells
Solar cell
A solar cell is a solid state electrical device that converts the energy of light directly into electricity by the photovoltaic effect....
on their workspace and charged the cars from it, with no energy taken from the grid. Their workspace does not have an HVAC
HVAC
HVAC refers to technology of indoor or automotive environmental comfort. HVAC system design is a major subdiscipline of mechanical engineering, based on the principles of thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and heat transfer...
system, but uses biodiesel
Biodiesel
Biodiesel refers to a vegetable oil- or animal fat-based diesel fuel consisting of long-chain alkyl esters. Biodiesel is typically made by chemically reacting lipids with an alcohol....
space heater. In addition, all small appliances are powered by solar energy. Later the group formulated a plan to make money from selling excess energy generated from the integrated renewable energy systems and optimizing the uses through a smart grid technology, i.e. the car would be a power plant by itself. Considering a finite range for an electric vehicle, and estimating that only a fraction is used for daily purposes, looking at the statistic for Kansas, the team proposed that they could potentially use wind energy at night to charge the battery pack.
During the day, a plug in solar carport would be constructed and depending on the needs of the electric grid, power can be drawn from the solar carport and from the vehicle battery pack to augment, or even completely supply the grid. Keeping enough charge for the car to get home, the consumer of the EV would actually be able to profit by giving the excess miles during the day as a supply to the grid. This process was showcased to the US EPA in Washington DC in 2010. In February 2011, city officials of Lawrence, Douglas County
Douglas County
Douglas County is any of twelve counties in the United States, all of which are named for Stephen A. Douglas, a Senator from Illinois from 1847 to 1861 and the Democratic Party nominee for President in 1860:* Douglas County, Colorado* Douglas County, Georgia...
declared that the University would be getting an electric car charging station. The group made the first unofficial charging station in May 2010.
Education Programs (K-12)
The group hosts and organizes various education programs and projects for the surrounding schools.
See also
- Element OneElement OneElement One is Lawrence Technological University's race team from Detroit, Michigan that competed in the 2008 Formula Zero Championship, the world's first-ever hydrogen fuel cell race series.- About the Team :...
- Sustainable transportSustainable transportSustainable transport refers to any means of transport with low impact on the environment, and includes walking and cycling, transit oriented development, green vehicles, CarSharing, and building or protecting urban transport systems that are fuel-efficient, space-saving and promote healthy...
- Neighborhood electric vehicleNeighborhood electric vehicleA Neighborhood Electric Vehicle is a U.S. denomination for battery electric vehicles that are legally limited to roads with posted speed limits as high as depending on the particular laws of the state, usually are built to have a top speed of , and have a maximum loaded weight of 3,000 lbs...
- ElectrocarElectrocarElectrocar, Electrocart is an electric vehicle, typically a small cart with an electrical driving gear and a storage battery.In the United Kingdom, similar small electric vehicles were known as electric drays....
- Dual-mode vehicleDual-mode vehicleA dual-mode vehicle is a vehicle that can run on conventional road surfaces or a dedicated track known as a "guideway". Dual-mode vehicles are commonly electrically powered and run in dual-mode for power too, using batteries for short distance and low speeds, and track-fed power for longer...
- Hybrid electric vehicleHybrid electric vehicleA hybrid electric vehicle is a type of hybrid vehicle and electric vehicle which combines a conventional internal combustion engine propulsion system with an electric propulsion system. The presence of the electric powertrain is intended to achieve either better fuel economy than a conventional...
- Solar-charged vehicle
- Plug-in vehiclePlug-in vehiclePlug-in vehicle may refer to:* Plug-in all-electric vehicle * Plug-in electric vehicle includes electric chargable vehicles such as BEVs and PHEVs*Plug-in hybrid electric vehicle...
Sources
- International Mechanical Engineering Congress & Exposition of 2009: American Society of Mechanical EngineersAmerican Society of Mechanical EngineersThe American Society of Mechanical Engineers is a professional body, specifically an engineering society, focused on mechanical engineering....
November 13–19, 2009 First Year Report of the Kansas Ecohawks: A SUSTAINABLE APPROACH TO ADVANCED ENERGY AND VEHICULAR TECHNOLOGIES AT THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS
Further Study
- Ecohawks Smart Grid Design at the National Sustainable Design Expo in Washington DC.
External links
- Official website
- Ecohawks Profile Multicultural Environmental Leadership Development Initiative at the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.