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With the continuing improvements to thermoelectric (TE) materials and systems, their potential for both energy recovery and thermal management is increasingly apparent. Recent developments in materials and notably Skutterudites have allowed materials to be matched much more closely to the working temperatures of a light duty power-train. The choice of TE materials remains a substantial question in the design of a thermoelectric generator (TEG). While the quest for improvements in materials performance continues, the work reported in this paper is characterized by the decision to focus on the refinement of one class of TE materials: Skutterudites. In parallel, the engineering work on the integration of the TE materials into a heat exchanger could continue and be focused on the properties of this class of material. Skutterudites offer the combination of a high working temperature and a competitive electrical output (defined by ZT, the figure of merit).

Panel Discussions held at the SAE World Congress in both 2013 and 2014 observed that a shortage of good quality engineering talent formed a chronic and major challenge. (“Good quality” refers to applicants that would be shortlisted for interview.) While doubts have been expressed in some quarters, the shortage is confirmed by automotive sector employers and the Panel's view was that it was symptomatic of a range of issues, all of which have some bearing on the future of the profession. Initiatives to improve recruitment and retention have had varying degrees of success. Efforts need to be intensified in primary schools where negative perceptions develop and deepen. Schemes like AWIM that operate on a large scale and are designed to supplement school curricula should operate at an international level. Universities represent the entry point into the engineering profession and their role in the recruitment process as well as education and training is crucial.

The notion of open source systems has been well established in systems software and typified by the development of the Linux operating system. An open source community is a community of interest that makes use of software tools in research and development. Their ongoing development is part of the free flow of ideas on which the community. The motivation for the work reported in this paper is to provide the research community in engine controls with a ready access to a complete engine management solution and the component parts. The work described in this paper extends open source principles to engine control with a portable spark ignition (SI) control strategy assembled using Simulink. The underlying low level drivers are written in C and designed for portability. A calibration tool is written in C and works over a controller area network (CAN) link to the engine control unit (ECU). The ECU hardware is based on the Infineon Tricore microcontroller.

This paper presents the conclusions of a study into the way the Formula SAE project works in the UK academic sector. The motivation for the work arose during the introduction of the project at the University of Sussex when we needed to evaluate the cost effectiveness of the project as part of the engineering curriculum. The traditional view of FSAE in the UK was that it proved a valuable recruitment tool and when only a few universities offered the project to students this was clearly the case. However now that the project is more widely adopted and where smaller Departments are now supporting the project, there is a need to look more closely at the effectiveness of the project. Identification of the factors that make a successful entry has also helped in an evaluation of the resource requirements. The general conclusion from the work is that Departments must work to extract the benefits of the project through curriculum planning.

The Formula SAE competition (known as Formula Student in the UK) is well established and continues to be highly popular with engineering students. The annual United Kingdom competition bears witness to this enthusiasm with a strong turnout of a total of 84 teams, including 41 teams from the United Kingdom and 21 other nations represented in 2004. In 2004 some countries, including Japan, Australia and South Korea participated for the first time. There are, for a university, significant implications of resource costs when running the Formula SAE project, mainly financial and time. Time costs in particular are acute with supervision time from university faculty groups and technicians (this latter being particularly intense). This investment needs justification in the light of other demands.

Fuel cell power for cars appears to be the most promising alternative power-train technology. It is not alone in being touted as a likely successor to the diesel or gasoline fuelled internal combustion engine (ICE). What makes a significant difference is the extent of support that has been recently offered by vehicle manufacturers from their own research and development budgets. In spite of investment and strong interest to get fuel cell powered vehicles into the market there remain a series of question marks over the concept of fuel cell powered cars. Some concern technology - can fuel cells deliver an efficiency which meets performance criteria? Others are social and concerned with the acceptability of the car to the buying public and its green credentials. While the technical issues are the subject of a number of development programs, the other issues lie in the domain of marketing and the forming of public opinion.