Westport Fuel Systems & Scania partner on direct-injected hydrogen engine research project
22 January 2021
Westport Fuel Systems will begin a research project with Scania to apply an HPDI 2.0 fuel system with hydrogen to the latest Scania commercial vehicle engine. Preliminary test results are expected in the second half of 2021.
Our specialty is working with gaseous fuels. Hydrogen use in an internal combustion engine with our HPDI fuel system could offer another cost-competitive pathway to reduce CO2 emissions from transportation. This exciting evolution of our patented technology could provide an economic, competitive alternative to fuel cells while providing a similar greenhouse gas emission reduction profile.
—David M. Johnson, CEO of Westport Fuel Systems
Scania engineers have already gained valuable insights from tests with hydrogen and fuel cells. Scania continues to drive the shift towards a sustainable transport system with here-and-now-solutions as well as exploring new and future solutions; this research project is yet another example.
We look forward to the results of this research, and how it can guide us in future decisions. However, research is always complex and we expect it to take quite some time before we see the outcome.
—Eric Olofsson, Senior Technical Advisor at Scania Powertrain Research & Technology
Westport’s HPDI (High Pressure Direct Injection) 2.0 is a fully OEM-integrated system that enables heavy-duty trucks to operate on natural gas with reduced fuel costs, reduced CO2 emissions, and diesel-like performance.
HPDI 2.0 consists of a fully integrated “tank to tip” solution, with a cryogenic tank and integral high pressure liquefied natural gas (LNG) pump mounted on the chassis of the truck and plumbed to the engine where fuel pressure is regulated before being supplied to the injectors via high pressure fuel rails.
At the heart of the engine is a patented injector with a dual concentric needle design. It allows for small quantities of diesel fuel and large quantities of natural gas to be delivered at high pressure to the combustion chamber. The natural gas is injected at the end of the compression stroke.
It comes down to this - what should we do with excess renewables beyond what we can use, export or store in batteries (or BEVs).
One of the options is to make H2, but it is hardly ideal, as it is a very light gas that diffuses through many things and embrittles natural gas pipelines.
And it isn't easy to store either.
So we need a better way of chemically storing excess electricity that can either be reconverted to electricity or burned in a turbine or piston engine (or any engine, really).
You have to be able to:
Create it from electricity
Move it around in pipelines (or tanks).
Store it in tanks or caverns or whatever
Reconvert it to electricity or
Use it in a heat engine.
Posted by: mahonj | 22 January 2021 at 09:42 AM
Did anything become of the burnt chicken feathers? https://cfpub.epa.gov/ncer_abstracts/index.cfm/fuseaction/display.highlight/abstract/9002/report/F
Posted by: Albert E Short | 22 January 2021 at 12:12 PM
Why Hydrogen Engines Are A Bad Idea
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Ajq46qHp0c
Posted by: dursun | 22 January 2021 at 02:24 PM