The TU/ecomotive student group at TU Eindhoven has created an eco-friendly electric passenger automobile that absorbs more carbon dioxide (CO) than it generates while in motion. It is a device, known as Zem, that cleans the air using a unique filter. Zem can help lessen global warming by storing the caught CO and subsequently disposing of it. In the upcoming years, the students will continue to develop the car in an effort to make it carbon-neutral over its full life cycle and finally put it on the road.
producing About a quarter of the EU’s total carbon emissions occurred in the transportation sector, which is a significant polluter. Over 60% of these emissions are brought on by passenger cars. 35 students created a car that emits less or no emissions both during production and when driving it in an effort to reduce these emissions. The team also aims for maximum material reusability in the future.
BIG SCALE Through a unique filter, the car has a 2 kilogram CO collection capacity at 20,000 miles per year of driving. Accordingly, ten cars may store the same amount of carbon dioxide as a typical tree. Even though it might not seem like much, the team contends that if this technology were to be quickly adopted widely in all passenger cars, the overall payback would be substantial. Since there are more than an billion passenger cars on the road, they might gather net CO rather than emit it.
The students are in the process of applying for a patent for the novel filter that allows outside air to pass through. Although it is truly just a proof-of-concept, it is clear that in the next years we will be able to expand the filter’s capacity. Team manager Louise de Laat says that CO capture is a must for making up for emissions during production and recycling. When the car is charging, TU/ecomotive envisions a time when the full filter may be conveniently emptied using the charging station. Currently, the car can travel 320 kilometers before the filter needs to be changed.
CO-NEUTRAL Through find out how CO-neutral the vehicle’s life cycle from construction to use and afterlife is, a life cycle analysis using SimaPro software can be employed. To achieve this, several innovations have been made. Think about the methods the students utilized for 3D printing. Through the use of 3D printing, the monocoque and body panels are created with nearly no leftover waste. The student team also produces circular plastics that can be recycled for use in other projects after being shred.
The four-wheeled, sustainable electric vehicle has a sporty appearance. With good reason, claim the pupils, as the car sector faces a sporting threat. Road transportation must, after all, become much more sustainable. Manager of TU/external ecomotive’s relations, Nikki Okkels: By demonstrating what is now feasible, we hope to amuse the industry. and collaboration. There are chances and potential for the industry if 35 students can design, develop, and construct a nearly carbon-neutral car in a year.
Okkels: We encourage the sector to take on the issue, and of course we are pleased to collaborate with them on their ideas. We also hope to make some significant advancements in the upcoming years because we are still in the development phase. We cordially encourage automakers to visit and take a look.
All photos are courtesy of Bart van Overbeeke, Eindhoven University of Technology .
Zem, the vehicle that purifies the air while you drive, may now be seen for the first time! With Zem, we are encouraging the auto industry to consider the entire life cycle of its vehicles. With this concept car, we also want to challenge the auto industry. If it is feasible for 30 students to design a sustainable automobile in a year, why isn’t the industry acting more decisively? We are cutting emissions and improving the reusability and recycleability of their car by introducing innovative technology, materials, and production techniques.
producing About a fourth of the EU’s total CO2 emissions occurred in the transportation sector, which is a significant polluter. Over 60% of these emissions are brought on by passenger cars. The students wanted to design an automobile that not only has low emissions during the production process but also minimizes CO2 emissions when driving because of how much CO2 passenger cars make. Our long-term goal is for the car to be completely CO2 neutral during its entire life cycle.
Eindhoven University of Technology .
METHODS FOR SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION We have been using additive manufacturing, a brand-new technique, in the manufacture. We used this technique to produce our concept automobile with the least amount of CO2 emissions feasible. We have created the monocoque and the body panels in collaboration with partners like CEAD and Royal3D so that they are completely 3D-printable. These Zem components could be 3D printed with almost no waste material and the precise shape that was required. We can achieve our objective of having very little to no CO2 emissions across all life phases by printing these auto parts with circular plastics that can be recycled and used for other tasks.
CO2 Capture While Driving Using a technology called direct air collecting, we are revolutionizing the industry by cleaning the air while driving rather than emitting. A relatively new technique for purifying the air involves catching CO2 in a filter using direct air capture. We have included this cutting-edge technology into our vehicle. The concept is fairly straightforward: when we drive, air will pass through filters we created ourselves, collecting and storing CO2.
CONCEPT FOR RECYCLING Zem’s potential to be recycled depends on a variety of factors, including the components’ compatibility, ease of separation, and application of additives. We ensure that the CO2 emissions of Zem are lower than those of conventional cars by engineering the majority of its components to be recyclable or reusable. This seemed like the most sustainable choice to us because all of these materials and car parts can be utilized for other things and very little new material needs to enter the cycle.
RECYCLING BLACK CARBON We worked with Black Bear Carbon to incorporate recovered carbon black back into the refinishing of our car because up to 1.8 billion tires enter the global trash stream each year and the extremely useful carbon black is typically discarded. This circular strategy not only resolves a significant waste management issue, but it also significantly lowers the CO2 that would otherwise be released throughout this process.
POWERED BY SOLAR PANELS, BI-DIRECTIONAL CHARGING Bi-directional charging is a future innovation that Zem has incorporated. When no renewable energy is being produced at the time, cars can nevertheless power homes thanks to bi-directional charging technology. Zem might be compared to an external battery for your home, supplying renewable energy as needed. Solar panels installed on the car’s top have been combined with the bi-directional charging technology. Zem does this by utilizing the space on the top as well as the batteries to increase the sustainability of the car and its surroundings even when it is not in motion.
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