India: IIT-M students make electric racecar which goes 0-100 kph in 4 seconds

A team of students from the Indian Institute of Technology- Madras (IIT-M) unveiled their indigenously designed and developed electric racecar 'RF23'. The racecar is capable of delivering a top speed of 150 kmph and accelerating from 0 to 100 kmph in just 4 seconds. the vehicle is the institute's contender at national and international Formula races meant for academia. This new electric racecar is the result of efforts of 45 students from across engineering disciplines, over a one-year period.

For Team Raftar, which designed, developed and tested this race car, it is their second vehicle and their maiden electric car. Their first model was an internal combustion vehicle (powered by fuel) and was developed back in 2012. The team expects the latest electric model willoffer significant improvements in terms of speed, lap times, when compared to the fuel-powered version .

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Addressing the launch event after unveiling ‘RFR 23,’ Professor V Kamakoti, Director, IIT Madras, said, “The shift from combustion to electric vehicle was just as drastic as it was necessary, keeping in line with the global trend of moving towards sustainable transportation. With global electric vehicle industry still in its nascent state, the potential for growth and technological advancement in this arena is huge.”

He said that there are plans to develop this platform to come up with a driverless race car. He also stated that the learnings from this vehicle could result in understanding the EV technology better and thereby helping to develop better EVs for the mass market. It is envisioned that the driverless race car would be developed by 2025.

Another highlight of this 'RF23' model is the fact that its microprocessor is India's indigenously developed chip, which is known as 'Shakti'. Two variants of the Shakti processor have been used in this vehicle. Notably, the vehicle is said to have advanced battery management systems and thermal management. The technology built into the vehicle can both specify the amount of charge left and how much the overall battery health has depleted.

At present, the 'RF23' vehicle uses air-cooled systems to keep the temperature in check. However, the team is also working on liquid-cooling solutions for the same. Team Raftar looks forward to take part in the Formula Bharat event in January 2023 and Formula Student, Germany in August 2023.

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