Techno-economic assessment of hydrogen as a fuel for internal combustion engines and proton exchange membrane fuel cells on long haul applications

Abstract

Powertrain energy conversion and management are critical factors in providing affordable and robust solutions for transport decarbonization. Various powertrain technologies are being proposed to reduce the impacts of transportation-related carbon dioxide emissions, such as battery electric, fuel cell, and conventional vehicles running with lower carbon fuels. Specifically for the commercial sector, hydrogen internal combustion engines and fuel cells are being extensively discussed. In this sense, this investigation evaluates the benefits and areas of enhancement for hydrogen internal combustion engines and fuel cells from a techno-economic perspective. Power plant models were developed and validated in GT-Power, and detailed investigations on the energy loss pathways were performed. In addition, the powertrains are included in full longitudinal vehicle models and submitted to different driving cycles, representing homologation and real-world driving conditions, with the intent to understand the effect of the cycles from a global energy management perspective. Finally, the fuel consumption results are used as inputs for a total cost of ownership calculation to determine the economic viability of each powertrain. Overall, fuel cells offered efficient operation across the conditions assessed, with engine-powered powertrains showing reduced efficiencies ranging from 23 % to 63 % depending on the cycle and payload. The limited peak efficiency for the spark-ignited low-pressure hydrogen direct injection engine was a dominant factor for the reduced performance of this platform. Strategies for efficiency improvement are identified that could lead to improved internal combustion engine operation. Despite the limited efficiency benefits of hydrogen internal combustion engines, total cost of ownership calculations show hydrogen internal combustion engines being the most cost-effective solution in the near to medium-term scenario.