FEATURE
DAF is developing the XF H2 Innovation Truck which features a hydrogen fuelled internal combustion engine.
A Cleaner Burn By Brian Cowan
IF YOU LOOK AT IT SIMPLISTICALLY, THE HYDROGEN FUEL cell is shaping up as the primary path towards a carbon-free future for transportation. For light vehicles, battery electric looks secure as well, but recharging time and range limitation present huge challenges for long-distance goods cartage using pure electric drivetrains. Huge, but not insurmountable. One alternative is the use of a quick-swap battery module, able to be fully charged off-vehicle – though in a long-distance, heavy-transport application such modules would need to offer at least five times the 100kWh capacity of the likes of the Tesla Model S car. Which calls for a dedicated vehicle design, quite unlike any current truck. The point being there’s no single-best solution with each approach having its good and bad points. Despite the burning-
eyed fervour of some adherents for their pet concept, there are more shades of grey than a shelf of sado-erotic novels. And now, into this mix, comes a return of the idea of burning hydrogen directly in an internal combustion engine – on the face of it a grand scheme, for when you burn hydrogen (in other words, combine it with oxygen) the end product is simply water. Some 20 years ago, several engine makers looked seriously at the concept, chief among them being BMW. The company even got a 750i model running acceptably well, but eventually flagged the project for offering too many hurdles. Among them were very high combustion temperatures when using an ideal fuel/air ratio, leading to an excess of oxides of nitrogen (NOx) in the exhaust, and the need for aggressive Truck & Driver | 69
