JCB unveils hydrogen engine at Conexpo
JCB publicly unveiled its new port gas injected, 4.8L inline-four hydrogen combustion engine (448 ABH2)—the corporate’s zero-carbon emissions answer for building and agricultural gear—on the Conexpo 2023 present in Las Vegas as a part of the Worldwide Fluid Energy Exposition (IFPE).
JCB is investing £100 million within the challenge to provide super-efficient hydrogen engines. A staff of 150 engineers is engaged on the initiative and greater than 50 prototypes have already been manufactured at JCB’s UK engine plant.
Prototype JCB hydrogen engines are already powering backhoe loader and Loadall telescopic handler machines. JCB has additionally put in one of many hydrogen engines right into a 7.5 ton Mercedes truck—a retrofit which was accomplished in simply days.
JCB has additionally unveiled its very personal designed and constructed cell refueling unit to take the gas to the machines. The unit has sufficient hydrogen gasoline to fill 16 hydrogen backhoe loaders and is ready to be transported both on the again of a modified JCB Fastrac tractor or on a trailer.
JCB’s dedication to lowering emissions goes again virtually 25 years and the most recent diesel engines designed to adjust to European Stage V rules have already delivered a 97% discount in NOx emissions since 1999 and a 98% discount in particulates. As well as, JCB’s drive to cut back gas consumption means in the present day’s JCB machines use 50% much less gas on common than these manufactured greater than a decade in the past. This has saved 16 billion liters of gas—equal to 53 million tons of CO2.
JCB has additionally been growing electrical expertise to satisfy clients’ wants for zero-carbon merchandise. Whereas battery electrical is appropriate for smaller machines which do much less hours and sometimes use much less gas, bigger machines have a better vitality requirement. This is able to end in bigger batteries, which might take longer to cost, making them much less appropriate for machines which work a number of every day shifts and wouldn’t have the out there downtime to recharge.
In consequence, JCB has concentrated its growth of electrical machines on its compact vary, together with the 525-60E Loadall telehandler and the 19C-1E mini excavator—the world’s first electrical mini excavator.
As a part of its hydrogen growth, JCB additionally investigated its use in gas cells and in July 2020 unveiled the development trade’s first hydrogen-powered excavator—a 20-ton 220X.
In the intervening time, JCB has come to the conclusion that gas cells are too costly, too sophisticated and never strong sufficient for building and agricultural gear. In difficult the JCB engineering staff to suppose in a different way utilizing expertise that’s round us in a zero-carbon manner, the JCB hydrogen engine was born.
The distinctive combustion properties of hydrogen allow the hydrogen engine to ship the identical energy, the identical torque, and the identical effectivity that powers JCB machines in the present day, however in a zero-carbon manner. Hydrogen combustion engines additionally supply different vital advantages. By leveraging diesel engine expertise and elements, they don’t require uncommon earth parts and critically, combustion expertise is already effectively confirmed on building and agricultural gear. It’s a expertise which is price efficient, strong, dependable and well-known all through not simply the development and agricultural trade, however the entire world.
—JCB Chairman Anthony Bamfor
