Press Release: Efficient and high-performing hydrogen engines are a step closer, thanks to EU research funding

Researchers from Germany, Sweden, France and Austria, working together within an EU-funded research project and with US partners, have developed a new type of hydrogen technology that will lead to new and more efficient engines. The Hydrogen Internal Combustion Engine (HyICE) project has tested ways to make hydrogen-fuelled engines that are as efficient as current diesel engines, yet non-polluting, and with little or no trade-off in terms of engine size and power. These hydrogen-fed engines offer clear advantages over current generation engines and promise to compete with other propulsion systems in terms of performance and cost. The project members from the automobile industry, supplier companies and universities developed innovative fuel-injection concepts for engines for passenger cars as well as for trucks and buses. European hydrogen experts involved in HyICE regularly shared their findings with researchers from Department of Energy laboratories and universities in the US. This is a concrete example of cooperation between the European Commission and US Department of Energy for the promotion of research, and development of new visions for hydrogen energy and alternative power sources. The project results will be presented on 27 February 2007 in Munich.