Is hydrogen the key to the future construction and demolition industry? An example of two Liebherr excavators converted to H2 shows that it works in practice.
Construction machines are the basis and engine of every modern civilization. Buildings, roads or other necessary infrastructure can only be built with their help. Most of these machines still run on diesel and high-capacity combustion engines, which put a lot of emissions into the environment. The conversion of this industry to sustainable fuels is an important step in achieving the goal of climate neutrality. The first steps have now been taken.
The Dutch supplier zepp.solutions is now also using fuel cells in the construction machinery industry. The company announced that two wheeled excavators of the Liebherr 916 Litronic type were converted to H2 drive. Both the fuel cell system and the hydrogen storage from zepp.solutions are used in the excavators. The construction machines were converted six months ago and have meanwhile been tested in practice.
H2 excavators work satisfactorily and reliably
The Dutch construction company Jos Scholman, which has been using the excavators since then, is positive. The machines work satisfactorily and reliably, according to the conclusion after six months. However, the company does not provide any further data on consumption, performance or costs in comparison to “normal” excavators of this type. In the meantime, zepp.solutions has developed a conversion kit that can also be used for other excavators and construction machines.
According to the provider, it is characterized by its extremely compact and highly integrated design. It contains all the components, ancillary systems and control systems required for operation, along with software, to convert hydrogen gas into energy with high efficiency and stability. According to zepp.solutions, the system is currently being used very successfully both by manufacturers of new vehicles and by retrofitters.