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An engine from Styria specially tailored for use in racing is intended to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions of racing engines. AVL Racetech, a division of the Graz-based technology group AVL, has developed and built its own hydrogen combustion engine, in which the principle of water injection has been transferred to the hydrogen-powered 2-liter turbo engine, as AVL Racetech announced on Tuesday.

In its more than 20-year history, the AVL Motorsport department built its first own racing engine – powered by hydrogen (H2). “With AVL Racetech, we are pioneers in many aspects of motorsport and have now decided to also be leaders in the field of hydrogen combustion engines,” said Ellen Lohr, Director Motorsport at the Graz-based mobility technology company. The new engine is expected to be presented in spring 2023.

Unlike other hydrogen combustion engines, which are usually operated with a high level of excess air (so-called lean operation, note) and therefore generate comparatively little power, the new racing engine can generate a power level of around 150 kW per liter with only slightly lean operation. The turbo engine is thus in a range in which production-based customer sports classes would move today. To achieve this result, additional water is injected into the intake air of the engine via an injector. This increases the boost pressure. The evaporating liquid also has a strong cooling effect in the combustion chamber.

When designing the necessary injectors and valves, the Graz developers benefited from the precise knowledge of the overall system behavior with all air, fuel and exhaust gas flows, which AVL obtains with the help of its proven simulation models and 3D flow calculations. They also form the basis for ensuring that the safety requirements of motorsport are met and the mechanical limits of the engine are not exceeded, according to the company.

“It is a very complex technical challenge to achieve performance values ​​at motorsport level with an H2 combustion engine. But our prototype shows that it is possible,” project manager Paul Kapus is convinced.

AVL Racetech – formerly known as AVL Racing – has been active in all technical areas of motorsport for more than 20 years. The department works with customers in around 20 racing series worldwide in the areas of engineering, testing, simulation and manufacturing. Motor sport is used as a “platform for innovations” and the acquired know-how is to be transferred to the development of road vehicles for future generations of mobility.

According to AVL List GmbH, with more than 10,700 employees worldwide, it is the world’s largest independent company for the development, simulation and testing of drive systems in the automotive sector and in other industries. In 2021, the company generated sales of 1.6 billion euros, 12 percent of which flowed into R&D activities.