Electric drag racing
Encyclopedia
Electric drag racing rules are very different from traditional drag racing
. The common safety rules apply but additional rules apply depending on voltage
, battery type, motor number and configuration.
Electric motors produce 100% torque at zero rpm and this makes them quicker off the line compared to a piston-engined vehicle of the same power. The weight of the battery packs can impact overall performance raising 1/4 mile times. However, since Battery Technology has improved a great deal during the 1980s and 1990s and 2000's the performance gap between piston-engined & electric-engined vehicles has narrowed.
NEDRA division, current world record is 8.010 seconds over 1/8 mile, set on 16 June 2010 by Silver Giant II at the NEDRA approved Veidec raceway in Malmö
, Sweden
. Finish line speed was 127.75 km/h (79 mph). The lithium-ion polymer battery provides 48 volts and 600 ampere
s to each of four 24 volt motors for a combined power of around 100kW
, although less than half that power reaches the rear wheel, because a large part is lost as heat in the motors. Dry ice is used to cool the motors to 5°C between races. It has two gears, and the shift occurs automatically at 65 km/h (40 mph) using CO2-pneumatics
. It is built and raced by Danish
Team True Cousins, who holds the record for the 24 volt division at 8.677 seconds.
In 2011, Team Haiyin EV Racing posted a new record for the fastest electric drag car in the USA with a time of 10.08 Seconds @ 127 mph. This is the fastest time ever posted in America with a full-body 1981 Camaro drag car. Team Haiyin EV Racing is owned by Ronald Adamowicz of Middletown, CT. The new time is held in the East Coast Electric Drag Racing Association's records for 1/4 mile drag racing.
(NEDRA)
International Electric Drag Racing Corporation (IEDRA)
East Coast Electric Drag Racing Association (ECEDRA)
Drag racing
Drag racing is a competition in which specially prepared automobiles or motorcycles compete two at a time to be the first to cross a set finish line, from a standing start, in a straight line, over a measured distance, most commonly a ¼-mile straight track....
. The common safety rules apply but additional rules apply depending on voltage
Voltage
Voltage, otherwise known as electrical potential difference or electric tension is the difference in electric potential between two points — or the difference in electric potential energy per unit charge between two points...
, battery type, motor number and configuration.
Electric motors produce 100% torque at zero rpm and this makes them quicker off the line compared to a piston-engined vehicle of the same power. The weight of the battery packs can impact overall performance raising 1/4 mile times. However, since Battery Technology has improved a great deal during the 1980s and 1990s and 2000's the performance gap between piston-engined & electric-engined vehicles has narrowed.
Electric "drag" world records
In the drag motorcycle class, 48 voltVolt
The volt is the SI derived unit for electric potential, electric potential difference, and electromotive force. The volt is named in honor of the Italian physicist Alessandro Volta , who invented the voltaic pile, possibly the first chemical battery.- Definition :A single volt is defined as the...
NEDRA division, current world record is 8.010 seconds over 1/8 mile, set on 16 June 2010 by Silver Giant II at the NEDRA approved Veidec raceway in Malmö
Malmö
Malmö , in the southernmost province of Scania, is the third most populous city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg.Malmö is the seat of Malmö Municipality and the capital of Skåne County...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. Finish line speed was 127.75 km/h (79 mph). The lithium-ion polymer battery provides 48 volts and 600 ampere
Ampere
The ampere , often shortened to amp, is the SI unit of electric current and is one of the seven SI base units. It is named after André-Marie Ampère , French mathematician and physicist, considered the father of electrodynamics...
s to each of four 24 volt motors for a combined power of around 100kW
Kw
kw or KW may refer to:* Kuwait, ISO 3166-1 country code** .kw, the country code top level domain for Kuwait* Kilowatt* Self-ionization of water Kw* Cornish language's ISO 639 code* Kitchener–Waterloo, Ontario, Canada...
, although less than half that power reaches the rear wheel, because a large part is lost as heat in the motors. Dry ice is used to cool the motors to 5°C between races. It has two gears, and the shift occurs automatically at 65 km/h (40 mph) using CO2-pneumatics
Pneumatics
Pneumatics is a branch of technology, which deals with the study and application of use of pressurized gas to effect mechanical motion.Pneumatic systems are extensively used in industry, where factories are commonly plumbed with compressed air or compressed inert gases...
. It is built and raced by Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
Team True Cousins, who holds the record for the 24 volt division at 8.677 seconds.
In 2011, Team Haiyin EV Racing posted a new record for the fastest electric drag car in the USA with a time of 10.08 Seconds @ 127 mph. This is the fastest time ever posted in America with a full-body 1981 Camaro drag car. Team Haiyin EV Racing is owned by Ronald Adamowicz of Middletown, CT. The new time is held in the East Coast Electric Drag Racing Association's records for 1/4 mile drag racing.
Organisations
National Electric Drag Racing AssociationNational Electric Drag Racing Association
The National Electric Drag Racing Association , a Special Chapter of the Electric Auto Association, and exists to increase public awareness of electric vehicle performance and to encourage through competition, advances in electric vehicle technology...
(NEDRA)
International Electric Drag Racing Corporation (IEDRA)
East Coast Electric Drag Racing Association (ECEDRA)
See also
- ACS Green Chemistry Institute
- Drag racingDrag racingDrag racing is a competition in which specially prepared automobiles or motorcycles compete two at a time to be the first to cross a set finish line, from a standing start, in a straight line, over a measured distance, most commonly a ¼-mile straight track....
- Electric dragbikeElectric dragbikeAn electric dragbike, is an electric motorcycle used for drag racing.Electric dragsters have come of age with new developments in battery and motor technology. Electric motors powered by lithium cells can deliver power-to-weight ratios similar to high performance gasoline engines...
- Electric dragsterElectric dragsterAn electric dragster is a drag racing vehicle which contains an electric propulsion system which is powered by batteries, fuel cells, supercapacitors , and sometimes they include a combustion engine to recharge their ESS .Electric vehicles are becoming increasingly common because electric...
- Green Challenge
- Jet dragsterJet dragsterA jet car is a car propelled by a jet engine. A Jet Dragster is a jet powered car used for drag racing.-Land speed record:Jet powered cars are commonly used for land speed record attempts, after a rule change that permitted them in 1964....
- Le Mans SeriesLe Mans SeriesThe Le Mans Series is a European sports car racing endurance series based around the 24 Hours of Le Mans race and run by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest . The series was originally named the Le Mans Endurance Series, but changed its name prior to the 2006 season...
- Rocket dragster
External links
- National Electric Drag Racing Association
- Roadsters Embrace Green Racing.
- Green Racing Initiative (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency)
- Michelin Green X Challenge.
- American Chemical Society