Hydrogen Working Group working to advance transportation

Several organizations, encompassing companies, research labs, and academia, have come together to form the Hydrogen Opposed Piston Engine Working Group. The organization is a collaborative forum to advance sustainable transportation technology.

“An opposed-piston engine with hydrogen combustion could well provide the best-known thermal efficiency from a reciprocating engine, with the potential to match the in-vehicle efficiency of a hydrogen fuel cell,” said James Turner, professor of mechanical engineering, clean combustion research center, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology. “If so, it is a valuable potential option for long haul transit in our quest for sustainable transportation.”

The organization says it hosts a series of meetings among its members to exchange research results, insights and ideas.

“The direct-injection two-stroke engine could be a very promising and interesting option for hydrogen combustion to achieve zero NO_x because of its advantages of high-power density and inherent much lower NO_x emissions,” said Pierre Duret of DI2S Consulting & Training and former director Powertrain and Sustainable Mobility, IFP School (France). “These two-stroke advantages are even more significant with an opposed-piston engine thanks to its higher power density and efficiency.”

The founding members of the Hydrogen Opposed Piston Engine Working Group include:

Achates Power, San Diego, CA.
Aramco Americas.
Bourns College of Engineering – Center for Environmental Research and Technology, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA.
Combustion and Propulsion Systems, Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, Sweden.
Department of Automotive Engineering, Clemson University, Clemson, SC
DI2S Consulting & Training, Paris, France
Engine Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI.
ID-Technologies, Fribourg, Switzerland.
Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India
King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, Saudi Arabia.
Mahle Powertrain, Plymouth, MI.
Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI.
Powertrain Control Laboratory, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI.
Shell plc, London, England.
SuperTurbo Technologies, Inc.

BorgWarner has agreed to acquire the electric vehicle solution, smart grid and smart energy businesses of Hubei Surpass Sun Electric (SSE). The transaction has an enterprise value of up to RMB 410 million (approx. $59.36 million).

Headquartered in Xiangyang, Hubei province, China, SSE’s electrification business supplies patented electric vehicle charging solutions to customers in China and more than 70 other countries. SSE says it has delivered over 50,000 charging points and has led the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) of more than 250 charging station sites. SSE’s charging and electrification capabilities in China are expected to complement BorgWarner’s existing capabilities in Europe and North America, the companies say. SSE’s 2022 revenues for the electrification business are expected to be approximately RMB 180 million (approx. $26.06 million).