Swedish company Volvo Construction Equipment has announced the start of testing of the Volvo HX04, the first articulated dump truck built on fuel cells. The model is equipped with a 12 kg hydrogen tank, which is refueled in seven minutes and allows the machine to run for four hours. Volvo HX04 works without harmful emissions, emitting only water vapor and heat. The latter is used to heat the cabin.
Articulated dump trucks are large machines, usually designed to transport large loads on terrain with difficult terrain. As part of SBTi’s industrial transport decarbonization initiative, Volvo CE upgraded one of these models with fuel cells – the car lost its internal combustion engine and gained a hydrogen-electric platform, according to Electrek. The company states that fuel cells are not inferior to internal combustion engines in terms of battery life, power reserve and refueling speed.
The 12-kilogram fuel tank allows the Volvo HX04 to run for four hours and a refueling time of 7.5 minutes – about as long as it typically takes to refuel diesel dump trucks. In the process, fuel cells combine hydrogen with oxygen. As a result of the chemical reaction, electricity is produced, which feeds all the components of the car. Of course, there are no harmful emissions.
“The fuel cell works in the same way as a battery, except that it produces electricity from hydrogen on board as needed, rather than being charged from an external source. Vehicles with electric power units on fuel cells have a time of trouble-free operation, power reserve and refueling time, similar to those of vehicles with an internal combustion engine,” – explained in the company.
In addition to redesigning the car itself, Volvo CE has also taken care of building related infrastructure. Together with Shell, the automaker has installed a hydrogen filling station at a test site in Braas, Sweden, where a hydrogen dump truck is currently being tested. Shell has taken over the maintenance of the new station – the company supplies hydrogen to the landfill, as well as inspects and repairs the installation if necessary.
The company noted that although the Volvo HX04 is an early prototype, the car is already performing the tasks facing commercial dump trucks. In the coming years, Volvo will continue to test such cars, and then move on to their commercialization – the approximate start date of serial production is set for 2025. In general, the supplier intends to abandon internal combustion engines by 2040 – by which time Volvo will become a carbon-neutral brand.
