HD Hyundai Infracore has started verifying its “diesel-class performance” by placing an 11-liter hydrogen engine on a large excavator
HD Hyundai Infracore has started verifying its “diesel-class performance” by placing an 11-liter hydrogen engine on a large excavator for the first time in the world. It is speeding up commercialization by expanding the scope of hydrogen engine application to generators, trucks, and construction machinery.
According to the industry on the 3rd, HD Hyundai Infracore started performance verification by installing an 11-liter hydrogen engine (HX12) on a 38-ton large excavator last month. Although there have been cases of applying hydrogen engines under 9ℓ abroad, this is the first time that an 11-liter hydrogen engine is installed and verified. The company is intensively verifying its performance with the aim of securing output and torque equivalent to that of an 11-liter diesel engine.
HD Hyundai Infracore started developing hydrogen engines in 2022 and held the first start-up ceremony of the next year. Subsequently, Tata Daewoo Mobility and Tata Daewoo Mobility jointly developed a hydrogen engine for trucks and completed the test, and are conducting further verification.
The strength of hydrogen engines is that they are developed based on existing internal combustion engine technology. Compared to the electrification method in which electric motors and large batteries are newly installed, it has strength in application and commercialization of equipment.
It is also making progress in the generator field. HD Hyundai Infracore recently completed 1,500 hours of operation with a 200kW (kilowatt) generator equipped with an 11-liter hydrogen engine at its Gunsan plant in Jeollabuk-do. The cumulative power generation is 230 MWh (megawatt-hour), which can be used by about 800 households in Seoul for a month. In the future, hydrogen evaporation gas (BOG) generated from liquefied hydrogen plants will be used as fuel to continue further tests and strengthen durability and reliability.
HD Hyundai Infracore is presenting a step-by-step launch plan to put hydrogen engine trucks in 2027, hydrogen engine generators in 2029, and hydrogen engine excavators in 2030 on the market in turn. Industry experts say that the use of the existing engine production and maintenance system can lead to an eco-friendly transition in the field of medium and large-sized equipment that is fast to commercialize and difficult to electrify.
An official at HD Hyundai Infracore, said:
Hydrogen engines are a realistic alternative that can reduce carbon emissions while maintaining the strong output and durability of internal combustion engines,
“We will secure the highest level of technology in the fields of power generation, vehicles, and construction machinery.”
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HD Hyundai Infracore has started verifying its “diesel-class performance” by placing an 11-liter hydrogen engine on a large excavator, source
