Racing car enthusiast receives the HM Queen Margrethe II Travel Grant
Five students from Aarhus University will soon be venturing out into the world to expand their academic, social and cultural horizons. One of them is Carl Johan, a mechanical engineering student and part of the team in the international engineering competition for students: Formula Student.
Congratulations to 23-year-old Carl Johan von Düring Lausen, a fifth-semester mechanical engineering student at Aarhus University's Department of Mechanical and Production Engineering. Together with four other AU students, he has received the 2024 HM Queen Margrethe II Travel Grant, which was presented by Pro-rector Berit Eika at the university's annual celebration on 13 September.
Since the start of his degree programme, Carl Johan has been part of an interdisciplinary, student-run organisation called AU Dolphins, which is the university's team in Formula Student, an international engineering competition in which students design and build an electric racing car.
"It's great to be recognised for our work in the Formula Student competition, and the prize money is a godsend. I helped start the team, and winning this grant means we can compete next year in the Czech Republic or in the Netherlands. Regardless of whether our car works," says Carl Johan.
Carl Johan is one of the founders and the vice-chair of AU Dolphins, which includes fields ranging from mathematics-economics and international business communication to mechanical and electrical engineering. In mechanical and electrical engineering, students also work on study projects in connection with AU Dolphins, and they gain experience and competencies within sustainable technologies.
The HM Queen Margrethe II Travel Grant means that Carl Johan von Düring Lausen can travel as part of his studies, and his plan is to participate in Formula Student 2025 with the rest of the team at the Autodrom Most race track in the Czech Republic or at the TT Circuit Assen racetrack in the Netherlands.
"The grant will cover some of it, but not everything. Last year, we had 38 people on the team, and we’re recruiting new students now, so we’ll have to see how many we end up with when the competition opens next year. I’m crossing my fingers that there’ll be many of us, because it really is a fantastic opportunity to practice everything you need to be able to do once you graduate and enter the labour market," says Carl Johan.
Formula Student is held every year with races in several places around the world, including Germany and England. In 2025, 13 different competitions will be held around Europe. Teams of students from all over the world design and build a racing car and race in a mini version of the professional Formula 1.
Formula Student has existed since 1998, and it's not "just" about building a racing car that can go around a track in a good time. The teams are assessed on a wide range of aspects in the competition - from design, acceleration and endurance, to economy, business plan, efficiency, development and use of materials.
However, teams do not have to compete in all categories. For instance, a team can compete on the car's design and the team's budget report without the car actually being able to run.
"Obviously, we hope to take a working car with us, but that isn’t certain. No matter what, we’ll take a car, and then we’ll see whether it can complete a circuit or whether we can only participate in selected categories," says Carl Johan.
READ MORE about Formula Student here.
The other four recipients of the 2024 Queen Margrethe II Travel Grant are: Johan Trap-Godau, Bachelor’s student in Archaeology; Amalie Andkær Pedersen, Master’s student in political science; Rebecca Fjord Jørgensen, Bachelor’s student in biology; and Amalie Quist Rousing, Master’s student in biomedicine.
READ MORE about the award-winners here
Contact
Jesper Bruun
Journalist
Mail: Bruun@au.dk
Tel.: +4542404140