The competition was stiff at the 2009 Shell Eco-Marathon Competition, held April 15-19, in Fontana, Calif., but the North Carolina A&T State University's Aggie team met the challenge on the track, ranking third in the Prototype group with a hydrogen fuel cell powered car.

With more than 500 other students from around the world competing, the challenge before them was to design, build and test fuel-efficient vehicles that travel the farthest distance using the least amount of fuel. The 2009 Shell Eco-Marathon Americas roster contained 44 teams from six high schools and 29 universities from North and South America, including Brazil, Canada, Mexico, the United States and a guest team from India.

The Aggie Eco Car achieved a speed of 1,074 miles per gallon, placing them third in the prototype category. A&T senior design students were Sean Slate (team leader), Matthew Fuini, Damion Ross, Alex Kutterer, Brandon Patton, and Windell Cox. Their car was designed as part of a senior design class project which began in the fall semester 2008 through April 15, 2009 and earned them 3 credit hours for the fall and 3 credit hours for the spring semester as well, according to faculty advisor Dr. Messiha Saad, of the university's mechanical engineering department.

"This competition provided the opportunity for students to learn the mechanics and importance of teamwork, project organization, scheduling, system design, product design, product testing, cost analysis, and project reporting – all in a real world environment with real deadlines and stiff competition," said Dr. Saad.

"I am very proud that our students have demonstrated the ability to successfully compete with students from the top-rated engineering programs in the world," he added. Dr. Saad said next years goals will be to build a much more efficient car (2000 MPG).

This year, student teams were invited to participate in either the Prototype or UrbanConcept categories. For the Prototype category, teams entered futuristic prototypes – streamlined vehicles focused on maximizing fuel efficiency through innovative design elements, such as drag reduction. For the Urban Concept category, teams entered more "roadworthy" fuel-efficient vehicles.

Teams used any conventionally available energy source – including diesel, gasoline and liquid petroleum gas (LPG), as well as alternative fuels such as hydrogen, biomass and solar.

"The Shell Eco-marathon is a platform for students to let their imaginations run wild," said Mark Singer, global project manager for the Shell Eco-marathon. "By encouraging these students to build vehicles with greater energy efficiency, we hope this will help inspire others; and together we can find solutions that will help meet the global energy challenge."

Shell Oil Company is one of America's leading oil and natural gas producers, gasoline and natural gas marketers and petrochemical manufacturers. It operates in 50 states and employs more than 22,000 people.