Pubdate: Fri, 27 Aug 2010
Source: Toronto Star (CN ON)
Copyright: 2010 The Toronto Star
Contact:  http://www.thestar.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/456
Author: Tony Van Alphen

IT'S NOT A CANNABIS CAR BUT...

Calgary company with help from local firms develops electric vehicle 
with body parts made from hemp

Don't call it the cannabis car, but a Calgary transportation company 
and its partners including some Toronto firms have developed an 
electric vehicle with hemp body parts.

Calgary-based Motive Industries says it will unveil the design of the 
Kestrel compact car and its hemp composite components at an electric 
vehicle show in Vancouver next month.

The design and engineering of the four-seat car is part of Project 
Eve, a major Canadian initiative that is promoting the production of 
electric vehicles and parts.

A consortium of more than a dozen companies, including Toronto 
Electric and Archronix Corp. of Markham, and some technical schools 
plan to use impact-resistant, bio-composite material made from 
industrial hemp, other fibres and resins for outside body panels and 
some interior components.

Hemp does not contain tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the active 
ingredient in marijuana and hashish.

"We have had a lot of public interest in what's we're doing but there 
have been some sensational headlines," Motive president Nathan 
Armstrong said Friday about the mistaken link to cannabis and marijuana.

The project is one of many consortiums that have surfaced to pursue 
the emerging world of electrical and hybrid vehicles that would 
gradually replace the century-old internal combustion engine.

Project officials say the combination of hemp, other fibres and 
resins can be stronger, lighter, less expensive and easier to 
manufacture than fiberglass, a major material in autos.

Armstrong also noted that energy costs are much lower for 
manufacturing hemp and it produces no toxins that undermine the 
health of workers.

Some farmers in Alberta and Ontario already grow hemp for industrial 
uses that could be used for the car. A government-funded study is 
determining whether more hemp production is commercially viable in 
view of its potential uses.

"The farmers are going to be helping us and we are going to be 
flying," said Project Eve leader Steve Dallas about prospects for hemp in cars.

Dallas, president of Toronto Electric, said the consortium will 
unveil five electric prototypes for production within the next few 
years. Member companies have already selected a Winnipeg manufacturer 
to build a few dozen vehicles for large corporate fleets, he added

In addition to releasing a design of the Kestrel at the EV 2010 VE 
Conference and Trade Show in Vancouver, the consortium will unveil 
Dallas' A2B two-seat electrical car which he has developed in recent 
years and drives around Toronto. It can reach speeds of up to 115 km 
per hour, he said.

The consortium will complete and roll out the first Kestrel hemp 
prototype by the end of the year, according to Armstrong. While 
project officials are using hemp extensively, the main frame will be 
made of a aluminum.

The idea of using hemp as a material in vehicles dates back to 1941 
when auto pioneer Henry Ford produced a car using hemp, wheat straw 
and resins to make body parts such as trunk lids that could withstand 
eight times the force of steel before denting. However, the company 
never used hemp extensively.

Hemp also has numerous industrial uses ranging from the production of 
chemicals, to paints, the backing on carpets and even as an 
alternative fuel for cars.

Project officials also say Canada has an advantage in exploiting the 
use of hemp because of productions restrictions south of the border.

The U.S. Congress passed the Marijuana Tax Act in 1937 which 
effectively ended hemp production. Washington's Drug Enforcement 
Administration opposes any changes for domestic cultivation, hemp 
supporters say.
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MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart