Weichai Power’s WP15 direct-injection heavy-duty hydrogen internal combustion engine recently passed the authoritative environmental emission certification test, becoming the first product of its kind in China and globally to complete all core verifications under the China VI regulation. This achievement provides new technical support for the commercial application of zero-carbon power in heavy equipment.
It is understood that the WP15 direct-injection heavy-duty hydrogen internal combustion engine completed rigorous validation under full operating conditions, with pollutant emission levels significantly better than national standard requirements and CO₂ emissions close to zero. Leveraging technologies such as Weichai Power’s independently developed flexible direct injection, the product achieves ultra-low NOx emissions and can adapt to stricter future environmental regulations through a simple after-treatment system.
In terms of performance parameters, the WP15 hydrogen engine has a displacement of 14.6L, and in this test achieved a maximum power of 600 hp, peak torque of 2,800 N·m, and a maximum effective thermal efficiency of 46.8%. Its overall performance ranks among the first tier of global products with the same displacement.
In terms of industrialisation adaptability, the parts commonality between this model and traditional fuel engines exceeds 90%, retaining the advantages of internal combustion engines such as reliability, durability, mature manufacturing systems, and ease of maintenance. At the same time, the product has relatively lenient requirements for hydrogen purity, which helps reduce end-user costs and improve the economics of promotion in heavy-duty scenarios.
From an application scenario perspective, the WP15 heavy-duty hydrogen engine can be promoted for use in trunk heavy trucks, mines, ports, power generation units and other fields, and is particularly suitable for heavy-duty equipment scenarios with high loads, long operating times and high requirements for refueling efficiency.
In recent years, Weichai Power has been continuously laying out hydrogen power technology, having established an R&D and industrial system for hydrogen internal combustion engines and formed a product matrix covering multiple technology routes and the full power range. The enterprise led the industry’s first National Key R&D project for hydrogen internal combustion engines, once set a new global record for thermal efficiency among similar products, and jointly launched China’s first commercially operated hydrogen internal combustion engine heavy truck with Sinotruk, achieving the first grid-connected operation of a pure hydrogen power generation unit in China.
The emission certification of the WP15 direct-injection heavy-duty hydrogen internal combustion engine marks an important progress for Weichai Power in the zero-carbon power field. In the future, as the product enters mass production and demonstration projects advance, hydrogen internal combustion engines are expected to accelerate application in heavy transportation, mine transport, port operations, distributed power generation and other scenarios, providing support for the hydrogen energy industry and the upgrade of green equipment.
