Weichai Power unveiled a diesel engine with a base 53.09% brake thermal efficiency at the 2024 World Congress on Internal Combustion Engines in Tianjin. This achievement was officially recognized by TÜV SÜD, an international authoritative testing organization, and the China Automotive Technology & Research Center (CATARC), a professional testing body for Chinese internal combustion engines.

The new engine marks Weichai’s fourth improvement in BTE over the last four years— from 50.23% in 2020, to 51.09% in 2022, to 52.28% later in 2022, to the current 53.09%.

Building on its previous achievements, Weichai Power’s research team dedicated more than 500 days of focused effort to refine four critical systems: combustion, air intake, fuel delivery, and friction reduction. The team successfully advanced high-expansion combustion, mixed-flow pressurization, high-efficiency fuel injection, and low-resistance friction-reducing technologies.

These developments, achieved through incremental gains of 0.1% at each step, culminated in breaking through the 53% thermal efficiency barrier for the first time globally. During this research and development process, the team was granted 176 invention patents and 68 utility model patents.

Based on current estimates of Chinese diesel engine ownership, upgrading from a thermal efficiency level of 45-46% to 53% can improve the diesel engine economy by approximately 14%. This advancement translates to annual fuel savings of around 31 million tons and a reduction in carbon emissions of approximately 97 million tons.

For a heavy-duty tractor that travels 250,000 kilometers annually, this improvement can save roughly 12,000 liters of diesel fuel each year. Given the current market price of diesel fuel at 7.8 yuan per liter, this equates to an annual savings of about 98,000 yuan (US$13,500) for the owner.

In addition to transportation, this technological advancement will extend its impact to various sectors, including construction machinery, agricultural equipment, ships, and power generation equipment, making new contributions to the world's economic and social development.