Some truck makers, including Volvo Trucks and MAN, are redesigning their internal combustion engines to use low-emission hydrogen fuel instead of polluting diesel to meet the energy transition challenges they currently face, a move that could give new life to internal combustion engine technology, Reuters reports. Reuters notes that the global truck manufacturing industry is currently facing the challenge of achieving zero emissions. For long-distance freight transportation, batteries are too heavy and take a long time to recharge. The use of hydrogen fuel cells can reduce the weight of trucks and extend their range, but the cost of switching to this technology is high because companies need to design new systems. In response, executives from several truck brands and their suppliers say that’s why they’re immediately shifting their focus to developing hydrogen fuel engines. Hydrogen-fueled engines are a faster, less expensive solution and can be adopted from existing production lines.
For now, the biggest problem facing both hydrogen fuel engines and fuel cells is the scarcity of green hydrogen. The European Union and the United States are funding green hydrogen programs, and manufacturers such as Daimler Trucks and energy giants such as British Petroleum (BP) are investing in green hydrogen projects. Reiner Roessner, vice president of sales for MAN’s engine division, said demand for hydrogen-fueled internal combustion engines will rise once green hydrogen produced from renewable energy sources is widely available.” With the company’s first pilot program, MAN will deliver about 200 trucks with hydrogen-fueled engines to European customers next year for testing, a key step toward mass production.
Truckmakers are still investing in the development of hydrogen fuel cells, however, as they believe there is room for the two technologies to co-exist for different vehicle models and usage scenarios. Volvo Trucks said it will also launch a hydrogen fuel cell truck, which is expected to be available “between 2025 and 2030,” and plans to start testing models with hydrogen fuel engines from 2026. Lars Stenqvist, Volvo Trucks’ chief technology officer, said hydrogen engines “won’t be the mainstay” of Volvo’s sales, “but it will be a significant amount.” Despite the challenges, major suppliers such as Bosch and Cummins say truckmakers have embraced hydrogen-fueled engines because they already have specialized factories and supply chains. Truck makers from Italy’s Iveco Group and DAF, the European subsidiary of U.S. truck maker PACCAR, are also working on hydrogen-fueled internal combustion engine options. Just last week, Daimler Trucks unveiled two hydrogen-fueled engine prototypes. Cummins will offer test products to customers in different regions over the next year or two and expects to have a market-ready product within five years, said Jonathan Wood, Cummins’ chief technology officer.
Rather than wait for widespread adoption of green hydrogen fuel, some truck makers and suppliers say natural gas or biogas are also interim solutions with lower emissions than diesel.