Normal Motors introduced a brand new partnership with Japanese development automobile producer Komatsu to construct heavy-duty mining vans powered by the automaker’s hydrogen fuel-cell know-how.
The corporate will work with the Japanese agency to put in its Hydrotec-branded “energy cubes,” every containing 300 particular person hydrogen gasoline cells with an output of 80 kW of latest energy, into the mining vans.
The quantity of energy wanted for every truck can be immense. Komatsu’s 930E mining vans weigh over 500 tons, are able to producing 3,500 horsepower, and might carry a nominal payload of 320 tons.
The quantity of energy wanted for every truck can be immense
Hydrogen gasoline cells use compressed hydrogen as their gasoline, releasing water vapor as its solely emission. Although the know-how has been beneath growth for many years, GM has began scaling up its manufacturing operation within the hopes of making a brand new enterprise centered on cellular energy technology and heavy responsibility automobiles powered by hydrogen.
Charles Freese, government director of GM’s Hydrotec division, stated that a number of gasoline programs can be packaged in arrays which might be able to delivering “over 2 megawatts of energy” in every truck.
“Whereas batteries work rather well for electrifying passenger automobiles or fleets which might be localized, it’s not an efficient resolution for functions with excessive towing or the heaviest of payload necessities,” Freese added in a briefing with reporters.
GM has stated it desires to make use of the cubes for quite a lot of home equipment, together with cellular mills, short-term EV chargers, and vocational automobiles equivalent to terminal tractors and cement mixers.
GM and Komatsu plan on testing out a prototype truck on the latter’s proving floor in Arizona someday throughout the subsequent yr or two. In the event that they like the result, then they’ll get to work on a complete fleet. Mining vans are inclined to function at one location for his or her lifetime, making them good candidates for hydrogen energy, with its restricted fueling capability.
Daniel Funcannon, VP for North America engineering at Komatsu, stated the corporate was actively in search of companions to assist set up hydrogen fueling infrastructure at distant mining places, calling it a “plus and a minus” for the way forward for hydrogen-powered vans.
“The person mines would require a comparatively giant amount of hydrogen,” Funcannon added. “So clearly they’ll have to work on that offer on the mine web site with native or regional suppliers.”