China Yuchai, through its main operating subsidiary Guangxi Yuchai Machinery Company Limited, announced that the company’s YCK05 hydrogen-powered engine has achieved stable ignition and operation, following a successful demonstration at the Beijing Institute of Technology in late December. The YCK05 engine is the first operating hydrogen engine for China’s commercial vehicle market, which is also the world’s largest commercial vehicle market.

This successful achievement is another milestone in Yuchai’s development of hydrogen energy as an environmentally friendly alternative propulsion system following the introduction of Yuchai’s hydrogen fuel cell technology.

The YCK05 hydrogen-powered engine adopts a number of advanced special technologies such as high-pressure multi-point inlet air injection technology, high-efficiency low-inertia turbocharging technology and high-efficiency lean burn combustion technology. The engine also features design upgrades to the engine structure and its subsystems such as the combustion and gas distribution systems.

Yuchai took the lead in initiating the research and development of hydrogen-powered engines for China’s domestic commercial vehicle market and strengthened its scientific research cooperation with the Beijing Institute of Technology. Hydrogen power is an important step for China’s domestic engine industry to move away from the current internal combustion technology and towards more environmentally friendly alternatives. Yuchai will develop a solid process to transform hydrogen-powered engine developments into large-scale mass production of these engines, and the YCK05 engine may be widely applicable in bus, municipal, sanitation, logistics and distribution markets.

China Yuchai President Mr Hoh Weng Ming said, “With our advancements in developing hydrogen-powered engines, we have expanded to become the domestic enterprise with the largest engine technology portfolio consisting of traditional internal combustion engines, gas-powered engines, hybrid engines, and new energy power technologies. We look forward to the commercialization of hydrogen-powered engines in the future to meet the needs of our diversified customer base and to contribute to improving the environment.”