Toyota – apers

Finland finds the fuel of the future and beats hydrogen: sci-fi four-stroke engine

Razvan — Thu, 20 Jun 2024 14:27:13 +0000

The fuel of the future could well be hydrogen, which emits only water vapor for a reason. However, Japan was not going to be the only country to develop it, now that they have stiff competition. Finland has just discovered an even better fuel that we don’t even know about in America and that we are now going to explore. This is the sci-fi four-stroke engine that could revolutionize the world’s roads.

America has EVs and Japan has hydrogen, but Finland has developed something better

It is a welcome prospect for Finland to have shifted to ammonia as a substitute for hydrogen as it moves closer to adoption of cleaner energy sources. They mention that their approach solves several problems related to hydrogen, and these are storage, transportation, and hydrogen’s explosive nature.

Hydrogen is the most well-known ingredient of ammonia and the latter, primarily associated with fertilizers, has now evolved itself as a feasible option for overcoming the hurdles that come along the way with use of hydrogen. The key advantages of using ammonia as a hydrogen carrier include:

High Density: Indeed, ammonia has a higher hydrogen density as compared to that of the gaseous hydrogen; thereby making ammonia to be much more convenient to store and transport as a source of hydrogen. This also allows for the storage and transportation of more hydrogen in a given smaller volume.
Existing Infrastructure Utilisation: One of the major strengths can be mentioned here is the ability to utilize the current infrastructure used in ammonia production and distribution. Thus, transition from fossil fuels is easier than existing ammonia production and distribution infrastructure.
Global Accessibility: Ammonia is one of the most widely traded chemical products in the global market thus the market channels for this chemical are well developed. As such it makes it a light carrier for hydrogen to enhance its international mobility for trade and cooperation.

New fuel to revolutionize the roads and put an end to hydrogen: this brand is producing it

Hydrogen solutions via ammonia have been a notable area of advancement for the Finish economy. For example, Wärtsilä an international engineering company from Finland has introduced the first 4-stroke ammonia engine.

This is regarded as the greatest breakthrough of change in making the energy generation process much more environmentally friendly since ammonia may be used as a fuel source for heavy-duty engines. Moreover, there are currently ongoing projects for the hydrogen economy in Finland also such as green ammonia.

For example, Flexens Oy Ab and KIP Infra Oy have produced a whitepaper for green hydrogen and ammonia production at Kokkola Industrial Park with an electrolyzer size of 300MW. It is similar to a project from Malaysia to develop green ammonia, but only for vessels.

First ammonia engine, in detail: the potential uses of this innovative, clean fuel

The use of ammonia as a hydrogen carrier holds immense potential for various applications:

Hydrogen-Powered Transportation: Ammonia also could be used as a fuel for hydrogen transportation systems hence the potential to transform the transport industry. Fuel cells can be used to convert ammonia back into electric energy, making it easy to use the fuel in different types of transport.
Energy Density and Storage: Ammonia fire has even more energy density than hydrogen fire aside from the fact that the energy density of ammonia is higher than energy density of pure hydrogen gas. This implies that in the same volume, there is the potential to store more energy in the case of gases.
Versatile Applications: Ammonia is used in energy storage and transportation only to some extent but is also employed in other industries. Due to its properties, it is used largely in agriculture for application as fertilizer and in refrigeration.

You don’t see an ammonia engine like this every day, in fact, until now they were only for ships. In any case, it is a revolution that has not taken long to spread around the world, as demonstrated by the Malaysian project to generate it (in an even “greener” version). What do you think of this proposal to find something better than hydrogen and, of course, EVs?

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Japan is clear about the fuel of the future: they already have a prototype, and it runs on this

Razvan — Tue, 04 Jun 2024 12:23:28 +0000

The search for the fuel of the future seemed to have come to an end when we came across EVs, which are still not expanding as the experts would like. While in America we boast about the innovation that Tesla brings, Japan has just gone one step further with a new fuel for which they even have a prototype engine. Do you know which one we’re talking about? You won’t believe it, and it uses this chemical compound.

New country to take the lead in sustainable mobility: It´s not America

As the world continues to grapple with the challenges of climate change and greenhouse effects, hydrogen fuel technology has received praise in Japan with many experts describing the country as the leading hydrogen fuel technology nation in the next decade.

Given the opportunities for growth observed in hydrogen as a type of clean and renewable fuel source, Japan has taken a significant stake in the promotion of research and development. In this great technology, the nation has achieved a lot of progress through coordinated efforts between governments and industry players.

Amid its hydrogen journey, Japan has been able to manufacture a experimental vehicle that is propelled by hydrogen fuel cells. This stunning innovative prototype of a car is a product of Toyota and could only be from a country with advanced technological skills

This is the new fuel Japan is developing: The awaited end of the EVs

The Toyota Corolla Cross Hydrogen Concept is a visionary vehicle based on a new concept and demonstrates Toyota’s strategic vision of the future to focus on Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. That car idea is a futuristic concept vehicle based on the Corolla Cross, but instead of a regular ICE, it has an advanced hydrogen fuel cell.

The exterior and interior of the Corolla Cross Hydrogen Concept have received an update in line with the latest trend in the industry with the vehicle boasting of an enhanced and aggressive look. It includes a pinstripe detailing, outside bonnet scoop, specific front grille and headlight design.

The essence of the Corolla Cross Hydrogen Concept is the key component, the hydrogen fuel cell from the Japanese car giant, Toyota. In this system, the vehicle uses hydrogen and oxygen reacting to produce electricity for powering an electric motor that turns the wheels of the automobile.

The only output of this process in this kind of separation is the water vapor and this makes it a clean solution when it comes needs for sparing the environment. One of their primary advantages is that the hydrogen fuel cell system is also very efficient- Each stack can power a vehicle for approximately 300 miles.

Japan is clear about how to produce its hydrogen engine at large scale

Japan has a clear and concrete vision for a Hydrogen Society connected to hydrogen that has to be a key energy source for a wide range of applications. This venture is not limited to the transport sector only but also has applications in power generation, industry and even domestic use.

Hydrogen technology has been identified and implemented as one of the potential solutions toward green energy and economic and energy security in Japan this whole fiscal year. The achieved objective is to create a scalable, affordable, and sustainable hydrogen supply system, including generation and application.

Hydrogen has a role to play as fuel in highly efficient fuel cells or as a fuel in gas turbines for electrical application. It could also assist Japan in decreasing the dependence of the country on the imported fossil fuel as well as fulfil the goal of the country to produce a maximum of renewable energy possible.

It is inevitable to think, at this point, that Toyota’s hydrogen engine is going to mark a historic milestone in sustainable mobility. In fact, it has managed to debunk the myth that internal combustion can only be polluting with an alternative that is environmentally friendly and, to top it off, emits only water vapor. So what about EVs? Bad news for Tesla.

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Toyota’s Hydrogen Internal Combustion Engine Could Make EVs Disappear

Razvan — Tue, 26 Sep 2023 10:10:59 +0000

For the greater part of the past decade, Toyota has been trailing behind other carmakers with regard to battery electric vehicle (BEV) offerings. Contrary to Toyota’s conservative forecasts for BEV growth, electric vehicles (EVs) now make up roughly 14% of the world’s passenger vehicle sales. It’s still worth noting that Toyota led in global car sales last 2022. However, in the same year, Toyota only ranked 23rd in the EV segment sales, even with its new BEVs and plug-in hybrid EVs (PHEVs) combined.

For several years now, Toyota has been using a diversified vehicle electrification strategy, one which allocates the company’s resources among different electrified technologies, including hybrids, PHEVs, BEVs, and hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles (HFCEVs). Moreover, working towards its goal of carbon neutrality by 2050, Toyota has also been working on other non-electrified powertrains that could potentially be alternatives for the current petroleum-powered internal combustion engines (ICE). One of these innovations is the hydrogen internal combustion engine vehicle (HICEV).

So what is Toyota’s hydrogen combustion engine, and how does it work? Most importantly, can hydrogen internal combustion cars replace EVs as a feasible option for sustainable carbon-neutral mobility? Read on and be the judge.

Is Toyota Making A Hydrogen Combustion Engine?

Although Toyota has increased its focus on BEVs, the company is still pursuing hydrogen and carbon-neutral (CN) fuel technologies.

Last April 2021, Toyota announced that it had developed a hydrogen combustion engine and installed it in the Corolla Sport H2 racing car. Since then, Toyota has been developing its hydrogen combustion engine technology through motorsports, initially with the GR Yaris H2 and the GR Corolla H2. In fact, in February 2022, Toyota commissioned its long-time partner Yamaha to co-develop a hydrogen-powered V8 combustion engine based on the Lexus RC F’s 5.0-liter power-plant.

Moreover, in December 2022, Toyota began testing a hydrogen engine-powered crossover SUV in Japan – the Toyota Corolla Cross H2 Concept. Finally, during the 100th anniversary celebration of the 24 Hours of Le Mans last June 2023, Toyota unveiled the hydrogen hybrid engine-powered pure racing car – the Toyota GR H2 Racing Concept (video shown above).

How Does Toyota's Hydrogen Combustion Engine Work?

Hydrogen combustion engines are similar to traditional internal combustion engines in terms of basic engine components and the 4-stroke combustion cycle employed. Of course, instead of gasoline or diesel, hydrogen is used as the fuel.

The properties of hydrogen (higher ignition temperature and combustion speed compared to gasoline) require the combustion engines to have some modifications. To illustrate, for the first iteration of the Corolla Sport H2, Toyota modified the GR Yaris’ 1.6-liter turbo I3 engine to work with compressed hydrogen fuel. Because the hydrogen is delivered into the combustion chamber as a pressurized gas, Toyota co-developed special fuel injectors with Denso, adjusted the fuel-air mixture and ignition timing, and developed high-heat parts for the engine. In the Corolla Cross H2 Concept, the engine features hardened valves and valve seats as well as stronger connecting rods.

In the more recent GR Corolla H2 Concept (the first vehicle to race using liquid hydrogen), the powertrain modifications were even more pronounced to accommodate the fuel’s extremely low temperature.

Hydrogen combustion engines mainly emit water vapor, but they are not zero-emission machines because they still release trace amounts of carbon dioxide (from the combustion of the ambient air and some lubricants) and nitrogen oxides (a health and environment hazard in large quantities). Nevertheless, hydrogen combustion engines are still cleaner than hybrid and plug-in hybrid systems.

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The Advent of Solid-State Batteries: An Estimated Timeline

Razvan — Mon, 24 Jul 2023 05:07:28 +0000

The advent of solid-state batteries, a technology that promises to revolutionize the world of energy storage, is eagerly anticipated by many. This new breed of batteries, which replaces the liquid or gel-form electrolyte found in traditional lithium-ion batteries with a solid material, offers numerous advantages including higher energy density, longer lifespan, and enhanced safety. However, the question on everyone’s mind is: when will solid-state batteries become mainstream?

To answer this question, it’s important to understand the current state of solid-state battery technology. At present, several companies and research institutions worldwide are developing their own versions of solid-state batteries. These include industry giants like Toyota, Samsung, and BMW, as well as startups like Solid Power and QuantumScape. Despite the significant progress made in recent years, there are still numerous technical challenges to overcome, such as improving the performance and longevity of the solid electrolyte, and reducing manufacturing costs.

Industry experts predict that we could see the first commercial applications of solid-state batteries within the next few years. Toyota, for instance, has announced plans to showcase a prototype solid-state battery-powered vehicle at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, with the aim of starting production by 2025. Similarly, BMW has partnered with Solid Power to develop solid-state batteries for electric vehicles, with a target of achieving series production by 2025.

However, it’s important to note that these initial applications will likely be limited to high-end, niche markets such as luxury electric vehicles and aerospace, where the benefits of solid-state batteries can justify their higher cost. For solid-state batteries to become mainstream, they need to be cost-competitive with existing lithium-ion batteries, which are continually improving and dropping in price.

According to a report by Bloomberg New Energy Finance, this could happen around 2030. The report predicts that by this time, the cost of solid-state batteries will have fallen significantly due to advances in technology and economies of scale, making them a viable option for mass-market electric vehicles. This timeline aligns with the predictions of several other industry analysts and experts.

Once solid-state batteries become mainstream, they have the potential to dramatically accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles. With their higher energy density, solid-state batteries could enable electric vehicles to travel much longer distances on a single charge, addressing one of the main concerns of potential electric vehicle buyers. Furthermore, their improved safety could help alleviate fears about battery fires, which have been a significant issue for some electric vehicle manufacturers.

In conclusion, while it’s difficult to predict with certainty when solid-state batteries will become mainstream, the consensus among industry experts seems to be around the end of this decade. In the meantime, we can expect to see the first commercial applications of solid-state batteries within the next few years, marking an important step towards a future where energy storage is safer, more efficient, and more sustainable.

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