Recently there has been talk of everything from a biofuel Formula 1 car to teams recycling energy to carbon neutral offsetting. For as long as auto racing has been around people have complained about the the environmental impact of the sport. Now a truly new and radical idea comes from two motor technology companies. They plan to introduce braking which would recycle the energy and convert this into a boost for overtaking.
The companies involved are Xtrac and Torotrak , which are both involved in automotive technologies. The system which would be used would be a kinetic energy system, similar to that which is used in hybrids such as the Prius. The system stores energy while braking using it for acceleration or power at a later point in time. Already in 2009 a new radical plan aimed at reducing the environmental impact of the Formula 1 cars may come to fruition. While team bosses are still eager to keep costs to a minimum, Max Moseley has said that Formula 1 has always followed technological developments and served as a testing field and should continue to do so. This would almost certainly mean that the chances are quiet good considering the FIA (the governing body which controls Formula 1 ) came out stating that Formula 1 should seriously look to reduce its environmental impact.
No doubt Formula 1 needs to move fast in order to not fall behind such series as the Indy Racing League and NASCAR which have already considered or are making switches to more environmentally friendly types of fuel. CART another open wheel series has already run for years now on alcohol based fuels.
