System and Materials
The project System and Materials comprises the research topics of Hylley that are not directly connected to the combustion. The backbone of the project is the development of a multidimensional optimization methodology for hydrogen combustion engines.
This includes complexity and costs as target values, to finally make the engine more competitive. This is specifically challenging, as the hydrogen combustion is highly sensitive to certain parameters, like load and mixture quality. It is therefore very important, that the optimization includes the load demand, i.e. the application. A truck will certainly require a different engine than a bulldozer. We expect the differences to be far more pronounced, than this is the case with diesel or gas engines.
What is more, the pronounced sensitivity of the hydrogen combustion makes it difficult to find a robust optimum, which can be maintained throughout the entire lifetime. The optimization must, therefore, correctly anticipate the deterioration of the engine’s individual systems and components.
A major part of the project is therefore dedicated to the research into the deterioration of systems and materials of hydrogen engines. This includes the immediate damage to materials in contact with hydrogen, but also damaging effects due to the combustion properties of hydrogen (e.g. the small quenching distance) and the ageing of the exhaust gas aftertreatment