China FAW released its first liquid hydrogen heavy-duty truck
China FAW Group (FAW, often cited as First Auto Group in Chinese) released its first model of liquid hydrogen heavy-duty truck on Nov 8th at China Commercial Vehicle Show (CCVS) in Wuhan, China.
According to FAW, this liquid hydrogen HDT has an operation range of up to 1,200 kilometers. It is equipped with a 300kW hydrogen fuel cell and energy efficiency of the vehicle is 7kg/100km.
Photo: China FAW’s liquid hydrogen HDT
China FAW Group, established in 1953 and headquartered in China's northern city of Changchun, Jilin province, is the first and largest auto manufacturer in China (so it is called the First Auto). In 2021, FAW delivered 3.5 million vehicles to customers. Group sales revenue in 2021 totaled RMB 705.7 billion yuan. In addition, the group took the 66th place on the 2021 Fortune Global 500 list.
Vehicles using liquid hydrogen are more competitive over vehicles with gas hydrogen storage containers for higher energy density. China’s major commercial vehicle manufacturers are active in the field of liquid hydrogen heavy-duty truck (HDT). Since 2022, three companies have debut their liquid hydrogen HDT, including Great Wall Motor, FAW, and Foton Auto.
On April 10, Great Wall Commercial Vehicles’ liquid hydrogen heavy-duty truck was officially unveiled. The vehicle is equipped with the "Jupiter" vehicle-mounted liquid hydrogen storage system which has a capacity of 80kg of liquid hydrogen that enable the vehicle's cruising range exceeding 1,000 kilometers. This model is now in the road test stage.
See our previous report:
FTXT demonstrated liquid hydrogen heavy-duty truck in Beijing
Foton Auto has launched the 49T Auman Smart Blue FCEV liquid hydrogen heavy-duty truck in 2022, which can store 80kg of hydrogen and has a driving range of over 1,000km.
Photo: Foton’s liquid hydrogen HDT
However, the commercial operation, or even the demonstration, has yet started in China. There are still many hurdles to overcome, particularly for the necessary liquid hydrogen infrastructure.
The first technical issue is liquid hydrogen production. Liquid hydrogen is formed by cooling hydrogen to -253°C and then liquefying it through processes such as pre-cooling and throttling expansion. The low-temperature conditions required for production are very high. At the same time, liquid hydrogen consumes huge amounts of energy.
Secondly, liquid hydrogen must be stored in ultra-low-temperature special containers. Imperfect storage filling and insulation can easily lead to hydrogen evaporation loss. Therefore, liquid hydrogen also has strict requirements for hydrogen storage and transportation. Currently, all the hydrogen infrastructures in China are designed to process gas hydrogen, not liquid hydrogen.
What to be expected next and when will small scale commercial application begin in China for liquid hydrogen HDT? Our suggestion is to keep an eye at the investment into the innovation and production of key parts, and the building of relevant infrastructure as well.