Successful Development Project for Hydrogen Combustion Engines

Mercedes-Benz Special Trucks and Mörtlbauer Baumaschinen Vertriebs GmbH jointly presented their prototypes as part of the “WaVe” development project to research hydrogen combustion engines for special-purpose vehicles. The Unimog test vehicle and crawler demonstrated their performance in driving and working operation on the Mörtlbauer factory premises in Fürstenzell, Germany. The demonstration took place at the end of the project funded by Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action in which Mercedes-Benz Special Trucks and Mörtlbauer developed 2 hydrogen combustion engines together with 16 other consortium partners. The drive system has already been in use for over a year for various tests in the Unimog implement carrier. The dump crawler was put into operation in spring 2024 and has since also proven itself in initial application-specific tests.

“The final event held together with our partner Mörtlbauer on their premises once again demonstrated that both vehicles have reached a development status that we can be very satisfied with, even though this project has run for just 3 years. After numerous test deployments, emission measurements, and technical fine tuning, we are convinced that hydrogen combustion for work machines with high power requirements, both for driving and for powering auxiliary drives, is worthwhile, practical, and very low in emissions,” declared Franziska Cusumano, head of Mercedes-Benz Special Trucks.

“The fact that our crawler and the Mercedes-Benz Special Trucks Unimog can be easily refueled with gaseous hydrogen and that these vehicles also work reliably when using implements is the result of the outstanding cooperation in this research partnership. We have researched and understood this technology. We now have the corresponding experience and data. However, to apply these in series production, we have to go even further on this path. If the government and society choose to follow the path toward hydrogen combustion engines, we are ready to go,” added Armin Mörtlbauer, managing director of Mörtlbauer Baumaschinen Vertriebs GmbH.

With this type of vehicles, the challenge is ensuring that implements can be operated via a power take-off when driving. This usually requires sustained high power output. Using the 2 prototypes as an example, the WaVe project team demonstrated that the hydrogen combustion engine is particularly well-suited for such applications. The propulsion concept of hydrogen combustion ensures low emissions while simultaneously ensuring a consistently high engine output.
The prototypes are equipped with a medium-duty engine that the experts converted especially for hydrogen propulsion. For this purpose, custom pistons, a hydrogen-compatible intake system, and an optimized ignition system were used. Hydrogen combustion produces water, which is discharged as hot steam via the exhaust system.

On the Unimog, fuel is contained into 4 TÜV-certified tanks holding around 13 kg at 700 bar pressure in total. The engine delivers around 290 hp / 1000 Nm, making it comparable to the 300 hp diesel model in terms of output and torque.
The crawler dumper achieves similar values with its hydrogen combustion engine: The engine output is almost identical, and the fuel tank holds 14.5 kg of hydrogen at 700 bar. The vehicle has a capacity of 16 m3 and a payload of 30 t. With its dozer blade and 360° rotating body, it can be used flexibly to transport loose bulk material.

Source: Daimler Truck

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