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The Superbike Commission of the FIM World Superbike Championship (WorldSBK) has decided that, as in MotoGP, fuels used must be made from at least 40% fossil free components as of the 2024 season. BMW Motorrad is preparing for this and is heavily involved in the development of these fuels as a partner of the company NORDOEL within the government-supported join project DeCarTrans.
The project partners want to demonstrate how renewable fuels are able to be produced on an industrial scale to significantly reduce CO2 emissions in the existing fleet. Examples of these fuels will be used include biologically based fuels like eFuels, which are produced from water and CO2 extracted from the air in chemical processes with renewable energy. BMW Motorrad will then put these fuels through intensive testing procedures where they will be pushed to their limits to prepare them for the future of WorldSBK. These can be used in internal combustion engines, meaning that the current models can still be utilised.
Dirk Wullenweber, Area Manager for Marketing & Commercial Fuels at NORDOEL said “Previous studies have already shown that synthetically produced fuels can partially or completely replace conventional petrol in the existing fleet… BMW Motorrad Motorsport has the know-how, experts and measuring facilities to test and analyse all aspects of our fuels at the limit. This allows us to develop a top-quality, alternative high-performance fuel for motor racing and everyday use. We, and the entire DeCarTrans project, benefit from the insights gained in Munich in our efforts to minimise the emission of pollutants.”
Thomas von Westberg is responsible for the project at BMW Motorrad Motorsport and added “We perform analyses, fuel experts evaluate the fuel from a chemical perspective, and the focus is obviously on the work carried out on the test bench to see how it performs when the engine is fired up, with corresponding analyses of the combustion process, carburetion, performance and consumption. Then there are other issues that come with alternative fuels. We also perform basic tests with other engines, such as our EWC engine. We play the results back to NORDOEL, and colleagues there can then make appropriate adjustments. The result is transparent and close communication. The goal of the development is a fuel that meets FIA regulations and can, at the same time, achieve the best possible performance and consumption figures in combination with our WorldSBK engine.”
