The VT Chem-E-Car team designs, builds, and tests a shoe-box sized car powered and controlled using chemical reactions and competes in national and regional competitions hosted by AIChE.
In addition to competing, the team actively volunteers through the VT Chemical Engineering Department, AIChE, and in the New River Valley community with the goal of advancing chemical engineering and promoting STEM involvement.
The team has won 1st place two times in the International competition during the past five years. In the spring 2023 regional competition held at Virginia Tech, Their car, named Car?, was powered by a Zinc-Carbon battery and controlled using methylene blue reaction. The team placed 2nd out of the 19 teams that competed and will be competing in Orlando, Florida for the international title.
The team also won 2nd place in the 2021 International Competition held in Boston, Massachusetts. The car, named H2GO2, was powered using a Lead-Acid battery and controlled using two pressure reactions and a Vitamin C reaction.
