Research Showcase winner has developed an electric car

PhD student Manoj Embrandiri with his electric car

 
Manoj Embrandiri - Graduate School Research Showcase winner 2011
Manoj Embrandiri, a 3rd year PhD student from the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, has been selected as the winner of the UNMC Graduate School Research Showcase 2011.  As Research Showcase winner, Manoj was flown to the UK to compete in the National Vitae Poster Competition in July 2011, where he will present his work on UNMC’s Very Own Electric Vehicle.
The Research Showcase is an annual competition organised by the Graduate School to promote presentation skills and the ability to engage with a wider audience.  The panel of judges are non-specialists and from different backgrounds and experiences.  Each year, the winner is funded by the Graduate School Malaysia Campus to compete in the UK National Vitae Poster Competition.  Manoj Embrandiri is the second recipient of this award, which started in 2010.
Manoj Embrandiri and UNMC's very own electric vehicle
Manoj is currently a 3rd year PhD student at the University of Nottingham Malaysia campus, Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering.  He hails from Kerala India and is 24 years old. His research interests include electric and hybrid vehicle design, renewable energy, alternative energy sources and energy management.
His current research is focused on improving the performance of electric vehicles by tweaking the battery pack with a “supercapacitor”.  This work has come a long way since its inception. A Perodua Kancil (one of Malaysia’s most famous compact cars) was converted into a fully electric vehicle and used as a test vehicle for research experiments.
On a shoestring research budget and still very much in its early prototype stages, the 1997 compact Perodua Kancil cum - electric car has a top speed of 50km/h and a range of about 50 km per charge. Intense research is ongoing to improve its performance in terms of better range and longer battery life, through the use of supercapacitors and batteries.
Supercapacitors, also called ultracapacitors, are more powerful cousins of the basic capacitor. With activated carbon at their core to act as a sponge for electrons, supercapacitors can absorb power or send a charge - far faster than batteries; making them excellent for accelerating a car or regaining braking energy. They are also far more durable.
At the official launch of UNMC-Shaz supercapacitor pilot plant in January 2011, ex-prime minister of Malaysia, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohammed personally took the electric-Kancil for a test drive as part of a guided tour of university facilities.
Manoj hopes to make significant progress in his electric vehicle research through the use of supercapacitors so that electric vehicles will charge faster, go further and ultimately be more reliable than they are currently. He is also working on an intelligent system for electric vehicles, which will be able to predict an impending acceleration or deceleration thus making power delivery to the electric motor much faster and more efficient.