Evolved from a Formula Student effort, the Forze team, based at the Dutch Delft University of Technology have been steadily improving their hydrogen fuel cell cars over several years.
Yesterday evening saw the unveiling of the latest iteration of their labours, Forze IX, the team drawing in increased interest from significant players from technology and industry, including Hyundai and the project’s principal partner, Shell.
“A future of racing without emissions is our dream” says Team manager Coen Tonnaer, “We want to promote hydrogen as a sustainable alternative to fossil fuels by showing that it can compete with cars that run on conventional fuels on track”. The Forze Hydrogen Racing team has already proven itself by building competitive zero-emission racing cars. In 2019, their previous car achieved a podium place in an official race in the Netherlands.
The students are taking a giant leap forward in hydrogen technology with their new car. Behind the complex technology lies a basic principle: in a fuel cell, hydrogen gas reacts with oxygen from the ambient air to create water. The byproduct of this reaction is electricity, which is used to power the motors in the car. “We want to keep challenging ourselves” says Tonnaer. “The Forze IX will have a peak power of around 800 bhp. This power is partly generated by the fuel cells, but we also have an additional supercapacitor energy storage system that can give a huge power boost to the car. There’s a lot of performance inside this vehicle.” according to the team manager.
The development of the Forze IX has taken over two years so far, Tonnaer: “An enormous challenge for us. Our team has worked incredibly hard and they have really poured their heart and soul into this project. To see the results come to life in this car makes me really proud and excited about what is to come.” The next steps for the team are to further test the systems in the car, so the hydrogen racing car can get on track as soon as possible.
Like the parallel, but entirely separate, H24 programme, the effort is looking to get an LMP3-chassised car at GT levels of performance
The Forze IX has two fuel cell systems in the 1,500 kg four wheel drive car with a total combined power of 240 kW – with boost power pushing that to 600kW (805 bhp). The car has a top speed of 300 km/h and accelerates from 0-100 km/h in less than 3 seconds.
