From Jul.3 to Jul.9, representing Korea, Kookmin University (KMU) and the S-Fuelcell team participated in and emerged as the champions of the Shell Eco-marathon Asia-Pacific and Middle East 2023, which took place in Lombok, Indonesia.

The Shell Eco-marathon is a global competition focused on future mobility energy technology that has been running since 1985. It is hosted by the international energy company Shell Global and co-sponsored by renowned companies including Microsoft, Nissan, and DuPont.

The competition's main challenge is to increase fuel efficiency. KUST (Advisor Shin Dong-Hoon) from the School of Mechanical Engineering at KMU was the sole team in the Prototype Hydrogen category. In their debut last year, they secured second place in Prototype Hydrogen. This year, they achieved 374 kilometers per 1Nm3 fuel efficiency, winning among 77 teams from 13 nations. When converted to gas energy, this translates to a gas mileage of 1100\ kilometers per 1 liter, 50 times more than existing commercial vehicles (which typically achieve 15-20 kilometers per liter).

Most importantly, the key factor in their victory was reducing the weight of the car and optimizing its aerodynamic design. High-efficiency lightweight fuel cells, a carbon monocoque structure, designs that minimize weight and drag through computational mechanics, and collaboration with students and S-Fuelcell all contributed to their win.
 

Through the competition, participating students gained valuable experiences that upgraded the standard of Korean university education. This not only involved designing and engineering future mobility products through lectures but also collaborating and competing with global teams. Furthermore, the competition showcased an elevated status for the nation, as numerous broadcasts and press outlets sought to cover it, and other global teams showed passionate interest in our Korean team.

Kang Hyun-Jin
Reporter
hyunjinkang1228@kookmin.ac.kr