UA News

UA student team's Drifter 2.0 heads to Texas on July 4 for the American Solar Challenge.

The University of Arizona solar racing team heads to Texas on July 4 for the American Solar Challenge, a 2,400-mile racing event starting in Plano, Texas, and ending in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

The American Solar Challenge is a competition to design, build and race solar-powered cars and is sponsored by Toyota and Crowder College. The challenge aims to promote greater understanding of the benefits and promise of solar energy technology, to inspire young people to follow careers in science and engineering and to enable students and engineers to develop and demonstrate their technical and creative abilities.

The UA vehicle, Drifter 2.0, is registered with the Arizona Department of Transportation as a convertible and is the state’s first street-legal solar-powered car.

UA students on the team have put in many hundreds of hours to get Drifter 2.0 ready for the race.

“Recently, we’ve been in the shop up to 80 hours a week,” said Oliver Stickroth, a materials science and engineering junior, and the mechanical lead on the solar car team. “But it’s fun,” he added. “We are inventing new things every day and solving problems on our own, so it’s a great experience to use the skills we’ve learned.”

The team of entries in the competition includes a mixture of veteran and rookie teams from across the United States and Canada as well as Germany and Great Britain. In all, more than two dozen custom designed, advanced solar vehicles will rely solely on the summer sun to power their team to victory.

Upon arriving in Texas, each team must put its car through a grueling week of qualifying and technical inspections to make it to the starting line on July 13. Teams that fail to meet the requirements will not participate.

The UA has entered a vehicle in each of the Solar Challenge competitions and in 2005, a combination of rain, wheel misalignment and other issues prevented the UA car, Drifter, from completing the minimum number of qualifying laps. During the competition’s inaugural year, the UA team took first place in the stock class in 2001 and 10th in the open class in 2003.

“We’ve done a lot of research and learned a lot about alignment and tire pressure since the last race,” said Harland Goertz, an associate at the Arizona Institute for Solar Energy, known as AzRISE, which has adopted the solar car project. Goertz and his AzRISE colleague Phil Davis are race team advisors for UA’s entry into the American Solar Challenge, a vehicle called Drifter 2.0.

Stickroth solved one of Drifter’s big problems – stability. “The car was very shaky and had a lot of torsional instability,” he said. “So I designed a carbon steel roll cage that tied in all the suspension and made the car rigid, so the whole car leans when cornering, rather than twisting.”

Drifter drivers can also thank Stickroth for creating a smoother ride. “Previously, the suspension was not adjusted well and the ride was bumpy,” he said. “I changed the type of fluid in the shocks and used nitrogen instead of air – to use the shocks the way they’re supposed to be used. Those two things have improved the driveability of the car.”

In March, the race team consisted of four students plus Goertz and Davis. Drifter was in pieces, funds were short and support had waned. Three months later, Drifter 2.0 is performing to race standards during trials, the crew of 11 is ready to take to the road with a fleet of support vehicles and the team has the support of AzRISE and the UA College of Engineering.

Goertz also cites community support as an important reason for the team’s race readiness. “The community is fascinated,” he said. “No matter where we go, people are excited that somebody is doing something about solar power.” That community support has translated into a local RV company helping prepare the truck and trailer for the journey, and a high-tech battery company pitching in to help iron out some of the power supply problems that bedeviled the original Drifter in 2005.

If Drifter 2.0 passes the grueling week of inspection, the team will deploy an array of specialists and vehicles for the race itself. “Our caravan will consist of a scout car one mile ahead of a lead car, which can be identified by its flashing yellow light,” said Davis. “Then comes Drifter 2.0, then a chase car that monitors Drifter’s systems by telemetry, and finally, about a mile back, the truck and trailer, which will be carrying spare parts.”

Race organizers have strengthened safety requirements this year, and Drifter 2.0 features the new roll cage designed by Stickroth and a five-point harness. Drivers can no longer lie down to drive and must wear a crash helmet and sit up so they have greater visibility, which required manufacturing a new driver canopy – complete with streamlined wildcat ears.

The canopy was designed by Stickroth and Nick Swinteck, solar race team lead and a materials science and engineering senior. Swinteck explained that the wildcat canopy is not all frivolity. “The canopy was actually quite a big design challenge,” said Swinteck. “We had to incorporate the seat, cover the driver safely and remain aerodynamic.” The revised race regulations meant that the new canopy would have a high profile, so Swinteck opted for an eye-catching design to promote the UA. “It was my goal to create something big and obnoxious that stands out,” he said.

Team confidence is high despite formidable competition from an experienced international field. Davis takes the David-versus-Goliath view: “We are going to win this race,” he said. “We have about a quarter-million dollars invested in Drifter. University of Michigan has invested 1.4 million dollars in its vehicle. We’re going to show that the little guy can beat the giant.”

Goertz is a little more circumspect. “Next year we will have a different car,” he said. “We will involve more UA departments, such as optics and aerospace. All the materials and expertise are right here at the University, and we need to incorporate them into future efforts.”

Swinteck also has high hopes for the future of the solar car. “This project allows students from different disciplines to come together to investigate renewable energy,” he said. “We should have taken an active approach to solar power a long time ago. It’s going to take a long time for solar technology to become practical and popular, but it definitely has to happen and I’m proud to be a part of something like this.”

Stickroth agrees and echoes Goertz’s comments about popular fascination with solar-powered vehicles. “People ask us when they will be able to drive one,” he said. “That’s a goal of mine, to make something everybody can drive. Looking at Drifter, you might not think a production car is practical, but I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeve that I’m saving for the right time.”

2008 race schedule

July 6–11: final qualifying at Texas Motorsport Ranch, Cresson, Texas

July 12: display and preparation day in Dallas

July 13: race start, Plano, Texas

July 15: stage start, Neosho, Miss.

July 18: stage start, Sioux Falls, S.D.

July 20: stage start, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

July 22: stage start, Alberta, Canada

July 22: race finish, Calgary, Alberta, Canada

July 23: race award ceremony, Calgary, Alberta, Canada