Supermileage Car
Supermileage Car
Written by Dalia Bekdache
Aeolus, named after the Greek God of the Winds, is the newest edition of the AUB Supermileage lineage in 2019-2020, and this year’s team is planning to set another innovative standard at the American University of Beirut.
The AUB Supermileage Team is a final year project under the supervision of Dr. Mohammad Harb in the Mechanical Engineering Department, and is currently sponsored by MSFEA, MTS, AUB USFC, ColorTek, BDD, Hexcel, Easy Composites, and SEDANA. It is based on the SAE Supermileage engineering design competition in Michigan, U.S to develop and construct a one-manned, fuel-efficient vehicle using a one-cylinder, karting I.C engine. The vehicles run a specified course to obtain the highest miles per gallon, and the teams have the opportunity to set a world record for fuel economy. It is a revolutionary project that AUB is proud to participate in for the third time out of 4 generations.
This year’s AUB MTS Supermileage Team consists of 7 members: Assad Akkoush, Mohamad Abdallah, and Youssef Ballout in the Engine and Electronics sub-team, and Carl Daniel, Dalia Bekdache, Hassan Ajami, and Ibrahim El Khatib in the Aerodynamics and Design Team. They’re building their car from scratch and are aiming to attain a mileage of more than 1500 miles per gallon (mpg).
So, what’s new this year? The Aerodynamics and Design sub-team adopted an improved vision for their vehicle design compared to the previous years. They opted for a custom-shaped, ‘teardrop’-inspired monocoque design with the wheels concealed inside the body for better aerodynamics and enhanced aesthetics.
Also, the team chose an extremely light push-pull steering system compared to a conventional steering wheel to improve driver visibility and comfort. The sub-team stressed a lot on design optimization to keep their vehicle as light as possible without compromising structural integrity. They also set to achieve a faultless surface finish of the monocoque made from race-car grade carbon fiber using a novel manufacturing method. The Engine and Electronics sub-team also worked on innovative and exciting methods to improve fuel efficiency: they were determined to reduce the engine’s displacement by replacing the internal components with off-the-shelf components of smaller I.C engines of cars, and machined several engine components to reduce weight while maintaining the required performance.
The big bulk of their work depended on engine tuning using their Electric Fuel Injection computer controls to ensure optimum power and fuel efficiency, and they built an improved interface for the driver and team to monitor and receive real-time data.
The team went above and beyond building a vehicle, as they prepped a 3-m long autoclave for carbon fiber curing, set up a dynamometer for engine tuning, and built their own vacuum table and heating table for plexi-forming with their available resources. They even dedicated some time to improve their social media platform on Instagram by regularly showcasing their work as a team (@aub_supermileage).
The team considered their work to be more than just a final year project; to them it was a passion, and a chance to excel and gain a priceless experience. They were extremely disappointed that this year’s dynamic competition was cancelled due to the current pandemic. The team will no longer travel to the States for the competition on June 4-5, 2020; however, a virtual competition will be held at the original date through presentations and online fairs. I, Dalia Bekdache, as a Supermileage team member, am looking forward to the day we see our project come to life, and we hope to make you all proud.
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