TU/ecomotive, a team from Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) competing in the Shell Eco-marathon, is working on a new electric vehicle. The four-seater city car is called Lina and features a frame made of biodegradable fibres derived from flax plants.
"Lina is the name of our fourth car. By participating in the Shell Eco-marathon, we want to prove that a practical city car can still be extremely economical. Lina will be a four-seater city car that not only looks at driving economically, but also at producing economically by consciously choosing our materials," said Noud van de Gevel.
Sustainable production materials
The team has been focusing on sustainable production materials for some time. For instance, Nova, Lina's predecessor, was fitted with an interchangeable exterior made of biocomposites. With Lina, the team now wants to take the next step and produce the frame from biodegradable fibres. Ninety per cent of the material is organic.
"Lina's chassis will be built from a biocomposite. This composite consists of a core of 100% organic PLA plastic. Around this, two layers of flax sheets are laid. This structure creates a light yet very strong material. The flax sheets are made of several layers of fibres lying in a carrier. These fibres are laid in different directions, as the fibres are especially strong in the longitudinal direction. These sheets are then heated and pressed."
Sustainability
"The use of flax is interesting in terms of sustainability. We like to see it as an alternative to carbon fibre because it is virtually impossible to recycle. In addition, it takes a lot of energy to extract metals from the earth. This is less the case with flax, as it can grow locally and harvesting is not very intensive. Furthermore, plants absorb CO2 while growing, so the car already reduces pollution during the production process," says Van de Gevel.
"The exact strength of the material is currently unclear as the process is completely new so a number of factors need to be estimated," TU/ecomotive's calculations, however, indicate that the car is strong enough to support four people and absorb the forces released during driving.
Source: TU/ecomotive
Source: Eindhoven University of Technology
By: Wouter Hoeffnagel
