DECARBONIZING TRUCKING BELOW: Iveco has both BEV and FCEV offerings on the same platform, providing 500km and 800km of range respectively Hybridization With existing legislation, hybrid solutions fail to fit nicely into a zero-emission category. While some truck manufacturers are doubtful that there is a long-term market for hybrid HGVs, a few are still exploring this technology. At DAF, Jurgen De Theije says, “DAF has successfully been running field tests with hybrid trucks. Hybrids may combine the best of both worlds, using the electric motor in urban areas and the efficient combustion engines outside these areas.” Taking it one step further to create a zero-emission hybrid solution, Iveco’s Steve Powell says, “At the moment, steady-state hydrogen ICE work quite nicely. Where that probably works best is as a series hybrid, so an engine driving a generator, a small battery or supercapacitor with an electric drivetrain.” Assessing current hydrogen ICE technology, Powell sees this as the best solution. He continues, “We are developing a series hybrid solution using the Cursor 9 engine.” A hybrid setup would allow the truck to be lighter than a BEV and offer more packaging options with a smaller battery. Powell agrees with De Theije that engine use could be geofenced for out-of-town driving, with battery only in residential areas to reduce noise pollution. Despite the potential benefits, MAN’s Ashlea Awbery says, “Because of the way the mandates have worked for the sale of zero-emission-only vehicles, I don’t think there’s enough time to get huge amounts of development into plug-in hybrid trucks.” HYDROGEN ICE At the time of writing, it looks likely that hydrogen ICE in trucking may arrive sooner than FCEVs despite hazy legislative guidance. From a manufacturing perspective, it is far easier to implement, and minimal drivetrain alterations are required. Awbery says, “Our H4576 hydrogen engine is based on our [diesel] D3876 engine and that’s available to order now. We’re doing a small series run of about 200 vehicles but we can upscale into full production with relative ease if we need to.” The pistons and cylinder heads have been tweaked to work with hydrogen, and spark ignition has been included. The exhaust aftertreatment still uses an AdBlue system. The gearbox and other components remain the same as an equivalent diesel vehicle. Similarly, Iveco is using an existing engine as the base for hydrogen ICE development, with its hydrogen Cursor 13 engine undergoing drive cycle testing at the company’s research and development center in Arbon, Switzerland. Awbery anticipates that FCEVs will be preferred in the long term due to better efficiencies. However, she says that heat generation could be beneficial in certain climates. “For instance, Scandinavian countries are looking at hydrogen ICE. We know from BEVs that we put a lot of energy into recycling the heat energy, but when we go into sub-zero climates, we have to create some heat. “Hydrogen ICE work really well for those environments because the heat isn’t wasted and it’s used to keep the driver warm.” To improve efficiencies across all climates, the company is exploring various heat recovery strategies. Looking ahead to the future of heavy-haulage decarbonization, Thärnå says, “Europe is moving toward electrification, hopefully very rapidly, but we also see a renewed focus on renewable fuels. There’s more investment being put into HVO production capabilities and biomethane.” With any renewable energy source, external infrastructure is a limiting factor. Truck manufacturers are casting a wide net to study several powertrain options but the “Europe is moving toward electrification, hopefully very rapidly, but we also see a renewed focus on renewable fuels” Ashlea Awbery, MAN Truck and Bus strength of each will rely, in part, on refueling facilities. Awbery says, “I think specialist applications are going to be looking for hydrogen, as are the countries where the infrastructure for electricity is not there.” De Theije explains that around 400,000 electric trucks need to be deployed across Europe to achieve EU targets by 2030. “To charge the trucks, 42TWh of additional green energy is needed,” he notes. “That is the equivalent of the energy consumption of 17 million households – approximately as many households as the UK currently has. To satisfy this additional green energy requirement for commercial vehicles, nine offshore wind farms in the North Sea would be needed, or 11 new nuclear power plants.” Given this projected level of demand, it’s likely that multiple fuel options will be needed to support the wider decarbonization of road freight. It stands to reason that along with BEV and hydrogen solutions, governments will need to take a slightly softer approach and legislate for low-emission fuels as well. 44 www.automotivepowertraintechnologyinternational.com / June 2025
Automotive Powertrain Technology International Automotive Powertrain Technology International June 2025 Issue: Page 44
