INEOS Grenadier

This project will assess the feasibility and production of a hydrogen fuel cell powered 4x4, including the vehicle requirements, system design and component supply. The key focus will be on meeting the performance, ruggedness and durability requirements for off-road use, while making use of zero emission technologies with a long range.

The fuel cell is well suited to this application since it has better energy storage, and therefore weight to volume ratio, than battery electric vehicles (BEVs), but works with electric motors to meet off-road driveability requirements, therefore opening up a large potential market, since traditional OEMs have vacated the space for heavy duty utility 4x4s (e.g. new concept Mercedes G-Wagen, discontinued Land Rover Defender etc), in addition to creating significant opportunity for carry-over to other off-road applications.

The defined aims of the project are:

*Simulate the powertrain under real world situations (specified temperatures, etc.) to define system specifications for suppliers.

*Derive the respective requirements for the electrical drive unit and DC-DC convertor sub-systems within the powertrain.

*Conduct evaluations of suppliers for off-the-shelf components and subsystems, to see whether they can meet performance and quality requirements, and financial/delivery-time constraints.

*Carry out an integration and packaging study, to explore the vehicle modifications required to include the hydrogen powertrain.

The project will be undertaken by INEOS Automotive, in partnership with AVL Powertrain, to develop an off-road vehicle platform from which many variants can be produced, with further applicability to large vehicles including vans and construction plant. INEOS is uniquely positioned to work with its chemical division to develop much-needed hydrogen filling infrastructure in the UK, and AVL will build on their work on vehicle engineering and design to become experts in the hydrogen fuel cell field.

Major challenges in the project involve the design and integration of high-performance subsystems with high durability; and development of optimal solutions to contradictory requirements, such as the need to seal the fuel cell for ingress protection, while also providing sufficient cooling to components.

If the Grenadier vehicle range captures just 10% of the UK market for SUVs, it will achieve annual sales of 30,000 units. 1% of the global SUV market would equate to 279,000 units per year. Overall, the project will bring a new vehicle manufacturer into the UK, and help to establish the UK as a hub for the hydrogen economy.