International. Mahle has received a serial order from engine manufacturer Deutz for the development and supply of components for hydrogen engines.
These are the so-called power cell units, i.e. units composed of pistons, piston rings and piston pins, which Deutz intends to install in stationary hydrogen engines for the first time from the end of 2024.
Other applications are planned in the off-road sector, such as agricultural and construction machinery. These new engines can run in a climate-neutral manner with regeneratively produced hydrogen, as no CO2 is produced when hydrogen is burned.
Mahle has been working on engine systems for hydrogen and other climate-neutral fuels for years. The technology group in Stuttgart is bringing this knowledge to the Deutz project.
"We see hydrogen as an important component for sustainable mobility, especially in the commercial vehicle sector. This project with Deutz is a milestone with a lighthouse effect, because it shows that there are other technological levers to achieve climate neutrality in addition to electrification," said Arnd Franz, Chairman of Mahle Group Management and CEO.
Dr. Sebastian C. Schulte, CEO of Deutz, said: "To keep the world moving, we need different technology options. What a climate-neutral excavator or combine will look like remains an open question. Several options are possible for engines that are constantly in use and move large loads. One of them is the hydrogen engine."
"Our successful pilot projects show the potential in the commercial vehicle sector. With Mahle, we now have a strong partner that will help us start series production of our hydrogen engines by the end of 2024," Schulte added.
For use in the hydrogen engine, MAHLE has further adapted and developed the aluminium piston and piston ring package from classic diesel technology. A big challenge in hydrogen combustion is finding the sweet spot between the gas mixture that is pressed into the crankcase during the combustion process and oil consumption.
The technology group has already extensively demonstrated the reliability of hydrogen components in a wide variety of engine classes.
"To achieve climate protection goals, we need to use the potential of all available propulsion technologies," Franz said.
Mahle is therefore betting on technological diversity as part of its corporate strategy: in addition to electromobility, including fuel cells and thermal management, what counts for Mahle is the climate-neutral green combustion engine, operated with non-fossil fuels such as hydrogen, among the future technologies for a sustainable propulsion mix.
In March 2021, the technology group commissioned a new test center for hydrogen applications on an area of 1,400 square meters at its headquarters in Stuttgart.
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