September 16, 2005 Source: University of Waterloo:
http://newsrelease.uwaterloo.ca/news.php?id=4586 UW Alternate Fuels Team to mark Challenge X success WATERLOO, Ont. -- With gasoline prices topping $1 a litre and the Ministry of the Environment routinely issuing more smog alerts this year than ever before, a team of researchers and students at the University of Waterloo is involved in a project to develop a cleaner automobile. Next Thursday (Sept. 22), UW's Alternate Fuels Team will hold a media event to mark their success in the first year as part of Challenge X, a three-year competition with headline sponsors General Motors and the U.S. Department of Energy. The event, starting at 2 p.m. in the Davis Centre, Room 1301, will also mark the arrival of the vehicle fuel cell and completion of the initial design, team spokesman Matthew Stevens said. Seventeen universities from across North America are competing in Challenge X, with Waterloo being the only one from Canada. They all have the common goal of re-engineering a compact Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) to run on a cleaner, renewable fuel. "UW's team has shown well in the first year of competition, winning eight first-place awards and two third-place ones -- including first overall," Stevens said. The team's design incorporates a hybrid fuel cell powertrain, with the key component being a 65kw fuel cell power module from Mississauga-based Hydrogenics Corp. Along with a 30-minute media presentation at the event, there will be an opportunity to drive a simulator that run a real-time vehicle model allowing a "virtual drive" of the team's design, Stevens said. The presentation will include speeches from UW President David Johnston and key sponsors such as General Motors, Natural Resources Canada, Hydrogenics and Research in Motion. Contact: Matthew Stevens, (519) 635-7538; m5steven@uwaterloo.ca Jim Fox, UW Media Relations, (519) 888-4444; jfox@uwaterloo.ca Release no. 203 -- September 16, 2005
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