SUSTAINABILITY NEWS
Production Car Autotest
The next day Lowenna also attended a Production Car Autotest( PCA) at Silverstone Rally School, hosted by South Oxon Car Club. Here the goal was to measure the event’ s carbon footprint. This was a smaller event than Saturday’ s, with mostly individual competitors rather than big family groups. A pre-event travel survey had already been sent out, making data collection smoother, however with a smaller crowd, Lowenna spoke to nearly everyone in person about their journey to the venue.
Once the competition started, Lowenna monitored vehicle idling time, before taking a track walk with the competitors. This was a great opportunity to hear how they were finding the course, and to ask about their fuel choices, and how they transported their cars. Other key checks were:
• The size of the venue and whether it used renewable energy.
• A meet chat with the five marshals on site
• Watching the action from a marshal’ s post – an amazing viewing spot( but the dust!)
The Results
For the PCA, emissions were relatively low at 1.6 tonnes of CO₂e, with the majority coming from the venue itself. In contrast, the Comp Safari event produced a higher total of 2.6 tonnes of CO₂e, primarily due to travel emissions from competitors and their support teams. As this was a family event, there were around 30 people supporting their children competing, whereas at the PCA it was mostly just the competitor and their navigator attending. This highlights the importance of understanding the nature of your event, as each one varies in its carbon footprint. By identifying the key source of emissions, organisers can make more informed decisions to reduce their environmental impact. A huge thank you to Southern Counties Off Road Club and South Oxon Car Club for supporting us in measuring the emissions from their events. We now have a growing list of volunteers keen to help— if you are a club running an event and would like to get involved, please get in touch by emailing sustainability @ motorsportuk. org
Revolution- April 2025
Sustainable Carbon Fibre for W16
Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team has announced its intention to use sustainable Carbon Fibre on the W16 Formula One car in 2025.
The team will qualify and apply sustainable carbon fibre composites to its race cars during the 2025 Formula 1 season, without sacrificing any on-track performance. Working closely with the FIA within the scope of the relevant regulations, the aim is to demonstrate that sustainable carbon fibre composites can perform to the same technically demanding requirements as traditional materials.
“ Collectively we are moving the dial on sustainable products,” said Toto Wolff,“ and demonstrating that Formula 1 continues to be the fastest laboratory in the world.”
Carbon fibre composites are primarily formed of two key components: the fibres and the resin system. By weight, approximately 60 per cent of the composite material is formed of fibres, with 40 per cent made up by the resin system.
Impregnating the fibres with the resin system, followed by curing, creates a lightweight material with outstanding mechanical performance. To qualify a carbon fibre composite material for use on the race car, it must undergo rigorous laboratory testing to provide understanding of its technical properties and performance. Transferring from the lab to the racetrack requires further trials and verification to ensure the material behaviour aligns with expectations.
The identification and subsequent qualification of sustainable materials solutions would not be possible without the continuous innovation and ongoing support of the supply chain; each carbon fibre composite component involves four to eight suppliers to deliver the final product.
“ I would like to thank our partners for supporting our drive for material innovation,” added Wolff,“ and to the FIA for enabling us to test these materials.”
British driver George Russel will be utilising sustainable carbon fibre on his 2025 Formula One car
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Jiri Krenek / Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Ltd.