【Haichuan New Energy】China’s first hydrogen internal combustion engine power generation system has been successfully ignited
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Recently, the first low-cost, high-efficiency, reliable zero-carbon hydrogen fuel cell power system developed by Yuchai was successfully commissioned in Chongqing. This is an important step toward the commercialization of Yuchai’s flexible fuel engine platform, as well as a significant breakthrough in the field of demonstration applications for hydrogen-powered engines in China. It is reported that for a long time, the difficulty in transporting hydrogen fuel, the incomplete network of hydrogen refueling stations, and the fact that hydrogen storage equipment is still in its infancy have hindered the commercial use of hydrogen-powered engines. Fixed-generation applications represent the market sector with the strongest demand at present. In response to this, Yuchai took advantage of the multi-fuel compatibility, low cost, and long service life of its independently developed flexible fuel engine platform, as well as the compact design, light weight, and high efficiency of its CoreBlue range-extending integrated motor technology, to develop this low-cost, high-efficiency, highly reliable, zero-carbon hydrogen fuel cell power system.
Leveraging Yuchai’s technical expertise accumulated over more than 70 years in engine development, as well as its innovative advancements in the field of new energy power systems, this power generation system features characteristics such as \"one low and two highs\". Low cost. This system has low requirements regarding hydrogen purity; it can be used directly in facilities that produce hydrogen as a by-product, such as steelmaking and chemical industries, to generate electricity. This reduces transportation costs and pollution-related waste, thereby improving the overall efficiency of these facilities. High efficiency. The power generation unit of this system utilizes high-efficiency permanent magnet synchronous motors featuring ChaiYi CoreBlue’s innovative flywheel motor design; it has also been further developed to take into account the characteristics of hydrogen-fueled engines. Compared to traditional power generation systems that use separate motors and engines, the flywheel motor design enables an improvement in power generation efficiency of over 20%. At present, the hydrogen-to-electricity conversion efficiency of Yuchai’s low-cost, long-life, zero-hydrocarbon fuel internal combustion engine power system reaches 14.2 kWh/kg. In the future, the thermal efficiency and power generation efficiency of these hydrogen engines will continue to be improved, with efforts being made to develop more efficient hydrogen internal combustion engine power systems. High reliability. The engine itself employs an intake injection technology approach with excellent durability; through optimized designs of the nozzle arrangement, intake pipe structure, camshaft, etc., it overcomes the technical challenges associated with backfire, thereby achieving stable and efficient operation ； Furthermore, through turbocharger matching and piston optimization, higher specific power was achieved while maintaining high thermal efficiency. It is reported that the successful ignition of this hydrogen-fueled power generation system indicates that Yuchai has mastered low-cost hydrogen fuel-based distributed power generation technology as well as extended-range hydrogen fuel power technology, laying a technical foundation for the subsequent large-scale use of zero-carbon power sources and helping China achieve its \"dual carbon\" goals.