Carbon fiber monocoque for a hydrogen prototype for low consumption challenge

Weight reduction and high mechanics performance are one of the challenges of the automotive industries future. A particular and interesting field is the application of carbon fibres in combination with structural foams. These allow to realize creative shapes for the car body but also strength and tough elements for the chassis, according to the necessity to combine style with design and engineering aspects. Nowadays, the problem of carbon fibre technology is the cost of production and the recyclability, so the major applications are in the racing field. One interesting application is the body of the prototype called IDRA, a low consumption vehicle which participated in the European Shell Eco-marathon. The chassis is a structural frame made with structural foam, the body is a part of the chassis and it is made of carbon fibre. The result is a well made car body integrated with all the sub-systems: steering, brakes, wheels, cockpit, electric wiring, controls, fuel cell, electric motor and transmission. The different design and production steps, from the concept phase and structural analysis made by means of finite element techniques to the production and the assembling of the monocoque, are discussed.