KCT students set to compete in 2 prestigious international sports events felicitated!

Two student teams from Kumaraguru Institutions' KCT, the only Indian teams competing in two upcoming prestigious international sports events—the 11th Monaco Energy Boat Challenge in Monaco (Europe) and the 39th Shell Eco Marathon Asia Pacific in Lombok, Indonesia—were felicitated on Tuesday at the college premises for their innovations and successful qualification to compete in these international events.

Team Sea Sakthi will compete in the Monaco Energy Boat Challenge, participating in the Energy Class race and showcasing their durable propulsion system built using renewable alternative energy sources. Meanwhile, Team ReNew will compete in the Shell Eco Marathon in the Prototype class within the Hydrogen Fuel Cell category and exhibit their emission-free vehicle. Both teams built their own vehicles from scratch at KCT Garage in Kumaraguru Institutions.

The objective of both events is to see vehicles race using the best carbon-emission-free technologies.

Following the felicitation of the two teams, the launch of Thimi—a three-wheeled hydrogen fuel cell-powered vehicle built by KCT students that will be used in the Shell Eco Marathon—was unveiled. G. Muniasamy, Executive Director of Kumaraguru Institutions, along with M. Ezhilarasi, Principal of Kumaraguru College of Technology (KCT), did the unveiling.

Team ReNew consists of eight students. The team built Thimi in eight months. The vehicle's body is made using carbon fiber, while the chassis is made using PVC foam, and the windshield structure is made using wood; all of these make the vehicle lighter and more agile. The vehicle's body is inspired by dolphins, which, according to the team, provides several advantages, such as enhanced aerodynamics and efficiency.

Regarding fuel, this vehicle uses a Spectronik 375 protium fuel cell with 57% electrical efficiency at 250W. Supercapacitors are used as intermediate energy storage for quick charge and discharge. The team claims that their Rs.14 lakh vehicle can travel 170 km on just 1 liter of hydrogen.

Prathish Subbu will be the captain of this vehicle and will ride it along with other competitors from 50 nations at the Pertamina International Circuit in Lombok, Indonesia, from July 2nd to 7th.

Team Sea Sakthi unveiled their vehicle, named Yali 3.0, a few months ago. It took two months to design and build this boat, which runs on a 10 KW lithium ferro phosphate battery pack developed by the team. The propulsion system features twin propulsion (each 6.5 KW), which was custom-made. The cockpit is also novel, as it was made using pineapple fibers and carbon fiber by the team to reduce weight and provide strength.

They will be competing with 21 other international teams, including a team from the University of Cambridge, from July 1-6. Yuga Bharati will be the pilot of Yali 3.0. It must be mentioned that the pilot, along with his co-pilot Jairish, attended yachting lessons and tests to obtain a yachting license via the Yachting Association of India to compete in this event.