The consortium research project Hydrogen Combustion Engine Trucks (HyCET) aims to demonstrate the sustainability potential of trucks with hydrogen combustion engines for transport logistics. Last month, the German Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport (BMDV) approved the funding application for the project led by the luxury vehicles company BMW Group.

Other HyCET project partners are powertrain specialist DEUTZ AG, transport company DHL Freight, hydrogen expert KEYOU, global multi-energy company TotalEnergies Marketing and vehicle manufacturer Volvo Group.

Alongside technology development, the other issue for HyCET is the required infrastructure, such as publicly accessible hydrogen filling stations. Hydrogen is regarded as a promising fuel for transport logistics owing to its shorter filling times, high payload and versatility, combined with its attractive range.

The use of green hydrogen produced from renewable energies will thus enable carbon dioxide-free long- distance logistics in the future. Owing to the low emissions from hydrogen combustion, the trucks are also considered as zero-emission vehicles under European Union regulations.

The HyCET research project will have an investment volume of €19.5-million, of which €11.3-million will be funded by the BMDV. Over the course of the HyCET project, the BMDV also provided an additional €5.7-million in funding for construction of two public hydrogen filling stations mainly for heavy goods traffic.

“Hydrogen technology offers us the chance to rethink mobility. In particular, the varied demands of transport logistics call for suitable responses. “ Hydrogen is a good energy-storage solution for climate-friendly transportation that can supplement battery-electric mobility,” says Digital and Transport Federal Minister Parliamentary State Secretary Daniela Kluckert.

The HyCET project supported by BMDV assesses the use of hydrogen combustion engine technology for the transport of heavy goods. In this way, the results obtained from real-life operation will contribute to competition between alternative drive train technologies in the field of logistics, she elaborates.

The network has set itself ambitious targets for the four-year project. The aim is to develop two 18 t trucks and two 40 t trucks with hydrogen combustion engines that will be tested in regular BMW Group and DEUTZ transport logistics. Two new hydrogen filling stations including for heavy utility vehicles will be built in Leipzig and Nuremberg, in Germany, to facilitate daily operation of these trucks.

Research into development and use of hydrogen trucks continue as well as filling standards for utility vehicles and implementation of the necessary infrastructure will also be advanced. Since this is one of the first research projects in which vehicles of this class will drive in regular logistics traffic, the trucks will undergo a comprehensive technology assessment.

The consortia project brings together expertise from different disciplines. As an end-user, the BMW Group defines key requirements for series introduction of hydrogen-powered trucks into its transport logistics at a later date.

As the consortium leader, the company also sets the framework for successful project implementation and is managing pilot deployment of an 18 t truck at BMW Group Plant Leipzig, as well as coordinating the technology assessment, which will compare the advantages and disadvantages of the hydrogen combustion engine with other innovative drive-train concepts for trucks.

“As the consortium leader for the project, the BMW Group is not only showing its pioneering spirit, but also its understanding of how to think about sustainability across all areas of the company. “This includes testing technologies in transport logistics at an early stage and adapting products and infrastructure to new requirements,” BMW Production Network and Supply Chain Management Senior VP Michael Nikolaides.

As one of the world’s leading engine manufacturers and a pioneer in the sustainable off-road sector, DEUTZ has developed a 7.8 ℓ hydrogen engine. The initial application is already running successfully in a stationary generator. As part of the HyCET project, this engine will be installed in an 18 t truck to demonstrate its practicality for mobile applications.

KEYOU develops innovative hydrogen technologies, specific hydrogen components and combustion processes that can be used in a cost-effective manner to convert conventional engines into emission-free hydrogen engines. In cooperation with the Volvo Group, KEYOU is developing a 13 ℓ hydrogen engine as part of the HyCET project.

Volvo is integrating the engine and the hydrogen tanks in two 40 t Volvo trucks used by DHL Freight in transport logistics for the BMW Group.

As one of the leading suppliers of road transportation in Europe, DHL Freight will bring its long-standing experience in road-freight transport and requirements from the user perspective to the project. In addition, as a transport partner of the BMW Group, the company will also use the first vehicles developed in field tests for shuttle traffic to supply BMW Group Plant Leipzig.

TotalEnergies intends to operate up to 150 hydrogen filling stations directly or indirectly in Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg and France by 2030. The two new hydrogen filling stations that will be built under the HyCET consortium in Leipzig and Nuremberg will be an integral part of this European long-distance hydrogen network.