THE HVS MEDIUM COMMERCIAL VEHICLE (MCV) ARRIVES AT PNDC FOR TESTING
PNDC, a whole energy systems research, test and demonstration facility, has taken delivery of our first hydrogen Medium Commercial Vehicle (MCV) prototype, for the next key phase of testing. PNDC will be carrying out performance testing of the chosen fuel cell as part of a £30million grant-funded project from the UK government’s Advanced Propulsion Centre (APC).
As a consortium partner in the project, PNDC will support the development of a vehicle control system and undertake system validation utilising their Power Hardware in the Loop (PHiL) capability to expedite vehicle powertrain development and testing.
The vehicle is our first hydrogen-powered technology demonstrator, which uses a cut-down version of the drivetrain used in the larger heavy goods vehicle (HGV) prototypes that we are currently developing.
PNDC will use the vehicle as a static testbed to evaluate and characterise the electrical and thermal performance of the onboard hydrogen fuel cell, including assessing the degradation during realistic driving scenarios based on the larger HGV design. We will use the results from the testing to refine the design of our vehicle control system to maximise performance and fuel cell lifetime.
During testing, PNDC will be supplying the fuel cell using their hydrogen supply infrastructure and taking the electrical output to their electronic load, following which, they will be testing the fuel cell in a PHiL scenario, using the electronic load to emulate the electrical systems of the HGV. This will use PNDC’s existing expertise in PHiL techniques for energy networks, transferring them to the electrified transport sector, a significant growth area for PNDC.
Learn more about PNDC here.