France: Toyota supplies fuel cells for Hyliko trucks + + + Berlin: Enapter begins production of water-cooled AEM electrolysers + + + Marktoberdorf: Fendt presents hydrogen tractor + + + Freiburg: ISE founder Goetzberger dies + + + India: Olectra presents hydrogen bus for the Indian market + + + DISCOUNT promotion: Your ADVERTISING on the PtX portal
A selection of PtX topics summarized at the end of the week
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Hyliko wants a fuel cell tractor...
Hylico has agreed with Toyota to supply fuel cell modules for its heavy hydrogen truck. The French truck manufacturer presented the vehicle at the beginning of February. The first 44-tonne tractor was designed on a retrofitted Renault truck chassis, in which the diesel engine was replaced by a hydrogen fuel cell system. The vehicles feature GreenGT hydrogen technology with two fuel cells and a total output of 160 kilowatts, a hydrogen tank manufactured by Plastic Omnium with a storage capacity of 40 kilograms and batteries from Forsee Power with a capacity of 60 kilowatt hours. The engine output is 350 kilowatts and, according to the company, the range is “estimated” to be 400 kilometers at 350 bar (900 kilometers at 700 bar).
...and offer a 26-ton truck with bodies. © Hyliko (2)
Hyliko offers two models: a 44-tonne tractor and a 26-tonne truck, available in 6×2 and 6×4 axle versions. In addition to the vehicle itself, the sales concept also includes the delivery of green hydrogen as well as a leasing and maintenance program. The company did not provide any information about the timing of the market launch.
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The Enapter AG has started production of the AEM electrolyser “EL 4.0 Liquid-Cooled” (LC), the water-cooled variant of the “AEM EL 4.0” type. The new product enables “the direct connection of an external cooling system to optimize heat management and efficiently use waste heat,” according to the company. It is particularly suitable for the production of green hydrogen at locations and operations where, due to external conditions, sufficient cooling is not possible, for example through exhaust systems, or where the resulting waste heat needs to be used more efficiently. The heat is released via a secondary circuit and can be combined with a heat pump. A common cooling circuit with other components such as water-cooled fuel cells is also possible. The AEM electrolyser EL 4.0 LC is offered in both alternating and direct current versions. The current delivery times are an average of two to 12 weeks, depending on the size of the order.
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Fendt presented the prototype of a hydrogen-powered tractor in Bavaria at the end of February. © AGCO GmbH
The manufacturer of agricultural machinery Fendt has developed a hydrogen-powered tractor and exhibited it at a “hydrogen summit” organized by the Bavarian State Ministry for Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy. Two prototypes are to be delivered in April 2023 to unnamed agricultural businesses in Haren (Emsland), Lower Saxony. The company did not provide any technical details. Fendt, together with other partners, is participating in the H2Agrar agricultural model project in Lower Saxony. For the first time, prototypes of a hydrogen-powered tractor are being used regularly in agricultural operations. The aim is to research and build an infrastructure for hydrogen for agriculture in the Emsland model region, the company explained. The hydrogen consumption of the tractors should also be determined within the project. At the same time, the technical requirements for a suitable hydrogen infrastructure for agriculture are being researched. The green hydrogen is produced using green energy from a local community wind farm. CEC Haren GmbH & Co. KG, Röchling Engineering Plastics SE & Co. KG, the Technical University of Braunschweig and the Emden/Leer University of Applied Sciences are also involved in the project. Fendt is a brand of AGCO GmbH, a manufacturer and supplier of tractors and agricultural machinery.
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Adolf Goetzberger in a photo from 1981. At that time, he laid the foundation stone for Fraunhofer ISE. © Fraunhofer ISE
The founder of the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE, Adolf Goetzberger, passed away on February 24, 2023 at the age of 94. He is considered a solar pioneer and in 1981, as director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics, he implemented the spin-off of a working group for solar energy systems into an independent institute. Adolf Goetzberger headed Fraunhofer ISE in Freiburg from 1981 until his age-related retirement in 1993. The institute is now one of the leading institutions for solar research. Today, the scientists' results shape and influence not only the solar industry worldwide, but also the entire associated energy industry. From 1993 to 1997, Goetzberger was President of the German Society for Solar Energy. V. He owned over 30 patents and received numerous awards.
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Olectra wants to bring the twelve-meter-long low-floor bus onto the market within a year. © Olectra Greentech Ltd.
The Indian manufacturer of electric buses Olectra Greentech Limited (OGL) together with the Indian Reliance Industries Ltd. presented a hydrogen-powered bus. The twelve-meter-long low-floor bus has 32 to 49 seats, depending on the version. According to the information, the vehicle can travel up to 400 kilometers on a single tank of hydrogen. Refueling takes about 15 minutes. The tanks are mounted on the roof and designed for temperatures between minus 20 and plus 85 degrees Celsius. According to the company, the vehicles should be on the market within a year. Olectra Greentech Ltd., founded in 2000. belongs to the industrial conglomerate Megha Engineering and Infrastructures Ltd (MEIL).
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Photos
iStock / © Danil Melekhin
