The era of Hydrogen cars opens – Developed the world’s highest level hydrogen engine technology that can use 100% hydrogen fuel for the first time in Korea.

□ While global competition for hydrogen mobility technology for carbon neutrality is fierce , hydrogen engine technology for passenger vehicles that uses 100% hydrogen as fuel has been developed for the first time in Korea .

□ The joint research team of Senior Researcher Choi Young of the Mobility Power Research Lab at the Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials ( President Park Sang-jin , hereinafter referred to as the Institute of Machinery and Materials ) under the Ministry of Science and ICT and Baek Hong-gil, a researcher at the Decarbonization Engine Research Lab of Hyundai-Kia Motors ( Chairman Eui- sun Chung , hereinafter Hyundai Motor Company ) , uses 100% hydrogen fuel. developed a ‘ direct injection hydrogen engine ‘ and proved its world – class excellence through performance evaluation .

□ The Hyundai Motor Company joint research team injected hydrogen directly into the combustion chamber of the existing Hyundai Motor Company hybrid vehicle engine at a pressure of 30 times higher than that and used a turbocharger to increase engine performance to achieve high thermal efficiency in all areas from start to engine load. Stable operation was achieved by maintaining .

□ The existing ‘ port injection type hydrogen engine * ‘ suffered from a problem of reduced efficiency due to reduced air inflow into the combustion chamber due to the space occupied by gaseous hydrogen fuel , and decreased engine performance due to backfire of hydrogen fuel and air .

• Port injection hydrogen engine : It is a type of internal combustion engine that uses hydrogen as fuel . It is an engine that injects hydrogen into the intake port at the top rather than inside the cylinder, mixes it with air, and then combusts it.

□ On the other hand , the ‘ direct injection hydrogen engine ‘ developed by the research team fundamentally solved the backfire problem by injecting high-pressure hydrogen fuel directly into the combustion chamber , and maximized thermal efficiency and output performance through high compression ratio, fuel stratification , and ultra-lean combustion. and reduce harmful emissions at the same time .

□ The hydrogen engine developed this time can reduce carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions by 99% and fine dust emissions by 90% compared to gasoline engines , and meets European standards for zero-emission vehicles . In addition , it emits less than 15 ppm of nitrogen oxides (NOx) * and achieves high thermal efficiency of up to 40% without the need for a post-processing device to purify automobile exhaust gas .

• Nitrogen oxides (NOx): A chemical substance produced by the reaction of nitrogen and oxygen, mainly produced in the atmosphere during combustion in automobile engines and power plants . It is considered one of the substances with harmful effects on the environment , and high NOx emissions can cause health problems related to respiratory diseases .

Choi Young, head of Mobility Power Research at the Korea Institute of Mechanical Engineers, said:

The developed hydrogen engine technology is significant as an immediate and economical technology that can replace fossil fuels used as the main power source of automobiles with carbon-free hydrogen fuel.

And added, “ Collaboration with Hyundai Motors “In addition to verifying durability, we will expand its application beyond passenger vehicles to commercial vehicles and power generation power equipment , and take the lead in realizing carbon neutrality through continuous research and development of carbon-free fuel power technology . ”

□ Meanwhile , this research was conducted with support from the KIMM basic project ‘ Development of liquid hydrogen engines for driving drones and robots ’ and the ‘ Hydrogen direct injection engine target evaluation ’ project supported by Hyundai Motor Company.

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The era of hydrogen cars opens… Developed the world’s highest level hydrogen engine technology that can use 100% hydrogen fuel for the first time in Korea, September 7, 2023