Chocolate-powered car - made from carrots!

A team at Warwick University has developed a Formula 3 racing car made of sustainable materials and powered by biofuel made from chocolate. The team leader, Warwick researcher Dr Kerry Kirwan, has won a British Science Association Isambard Kingdom Brunel Award Lecture.

The Award Lectures are prestigious prizes for talented communicators with an interesting story to tell about their research. Dr Kirwan was selected for his skills in communicating to non-specialist audiences about the racing car which is largely made from plants. He says "it includes a race specification steering wheel derived from carrots and other root vegetables, a flax fibre and soybean oil foam racing seat, a woven flax fibre bib, plant oil based lubricants and a biodiesel engine configured to run on fuel derived from waste chocolate and vegetable oil. It also incorporates a radiator coated in a ground-breaking emission destroying catalyst. “

It is the first Formula 3 racing car to be designed and made from sustainable and renewable materials that could meet Formula 3 racing standards. The snag is that it is configured to run on fuel derived from waste chocolate and vegetable oil. Formula 3 cars are currently not permitted to use biodiesel, but the team is hoping to make its competitive debut later this year.