World's First:
Hydrogen-​elec­tric race car beats the petrol-​powered compe­ti­tion

The “Forze VIII”, a hydrogen-​electric Le Mans style proto­type, became the first-​ever hydrogen-​electric vehicle to beat petrol-​powered cars in an offi­cial race. They finished in second place at the Supercar Chal­lenge on TT Circuit Assen on 18 August 2019.

The car, that was designed, built, tested and raced by a group of students from Delft Univer­sity of Tech­nology, finished second in the Supercar Chal­lenge at the TT Circuit in Assen, the Nether­lands.

Proud to finish on the podium

In a field of 43 petrol-​​powered race cars, the pink race car started the last race of the weekend from the fourth posi­tion. After a strong start, the car climbed quickly from fourth to second in its class. Within a few laps, driver Leo van der Eijk had already built up a 15-​second gap between him and the third posi­tion. The team was able to keep up the pace for the rest of the race and secured a podium posi­tion.

“We’re incred­ibly proud of what we have accom­plished today. Never before did a hydrogen-​​elec­tric race car beat other cars in an offi­cial compe­ti­tion - let alone the kind of petrol-​​powered race cars we were racing against today. This podium finish is the result of not just one year, but twelve years of dedi­ca­tion, faith and hard work. Being a student team makes it feel almost unreal to be the first to ever accom­plish this” says Zhi Wei Cai, Team Manager.

Learned a lot from Zand­voort

Mid-​July the team also faced gasoline-​driven compe­ti­tors at the future Formula 1 Circuit of Zand­voort. The team was unable to finish the first race because of tech­nical diffi­cul­ties, but the second race was promi­sing. However, after setting the fastest lap time, the car shut down for a brief moment, causing the Forze VIII to drop from the first to the last posi­tion. Not having enough time to reclaim the places they lost, the team finished last. Zhi Wei Cai, Team Manager: “After our race in Zand­voort, we knew we had the pace. The biggest chal­lenge for this weekend was to main­tain that speed for an entire race. That’s why we worked harder than ever before in the last weeks to maxi­mise our perfor­mance here in Assen. It was worth it, this time we finally secured a spot on the podium.

0-100 km/h in less than 4 seconds, emission-​free

The student-​built Forze VIII is a hydrogen-​electric car. Just like battery-​electric cars, the wheels are driven by elec­tric motors, which are powered by elec­tri­city. In a hydrogen-​electric vehicle, that elec­tri­city is produced while the car is driving. Hydrogen from a tank is combined with oxygen from the outside air, a process that produces only water next to the elec­tri­city needed to power the elec­tric motors. The car can be refilled in three minutes. While the pink race car is not compa­rable to the petrol-​powered compe­ti­tion from a tech­nical point of view, it is in terms of perfor­mance. The Forze VIII can acce­le­rate from 0 to a 100 km/h in under 4 seconds and has a top speed of over 210 km/h. The maximum torque the motors can deliver is 780 Nm, this is the same “turning power” as a 10cm long wrench that has a 780kg weight atta­ched to one end. For compa­rison: the Ferrari 812 Super­fast, one of the fastest models the Italian sports car manu­fac­turer produces, taps out at 718 Nm.

The next-​generation hydrogen racer 

Student team Forze Hydrogen Elec­tric Racing has existed for over 12 years, in this period they have built 8 cars. The team’s mission is to promote fuel- cell tech­no­logy. “We build an inspi­ring example, a race car, and we use it to show the possi­bi­li­ties of hydrogen to the world” says Cai. “The Forze VIII has been that example for the last two years, we have done every­thing we can on this plat­form. Desig­ning, buil­ding and testing the next gene­ra­tion hydrogen-​racer, the Forze IX, will be the next chal­lenge for our team. Todays podium-​finish has only made us more enthu­si­astic about what we can do with the next car.”