Mahindra has launched the world’s first fleet of a Hydrogen fuelled three wheelers at the Delhi Auto Expo 2012

Mahindra | Admin | January 21, 2012 at 7:18 pm

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Mahindra has launched the world’s first fleet of a Hydrogen fuelled three wheelers at the Delhi Auto Expo 2012. This hydrogen powered three wheeler is tagged as HyAlfa. Hydrogen is a carbon free fuel thus making the HyAlfa three wheeler very eco-friendly and non-pollutant.

This project has taken close to three years to its final stage. The project investment was one million USD and half of the investment was co-funded by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) International Centre for Hydrogen Energy Technologies (UNIDO-ICHET) based in Istanbul, Turkey.

A three wheeler or better known as auto-rickshaws in our country is a popular affordable mode of transport all over Asia. The three wheeler industry has seen a transformation in the recent past from two stroke engines to cng fuelled four stroke engine. Now the hydrogen fuelled engines are expected to replace the cng fuelled four stroke engine in the near future. The HyAlfa three wheelers will use hydrogen – a carbon free fuel and thus remove all pollutants. The new technology is also said to be low on fuel consumption when compared to gasoline with 1 kg of hydrogen giving around 80 km of mileage.

Dr. Pawan Goenka, President, Automotive and Farm Equipment Sectors, Mahindra & Mahindra said, “As part of its mobility initiatives, Mahindra has aimed at providing alternative fuel technology solutions and the HyAlfa is another step towards it. We have prepared 15 vehicles for integration of the optimised engine, storage system, fuelling system and safety features for this hydrogen fuel enabled vehicle”.
Dr Goenka further added “We are already working on integrating a comprehensive eco-system of sustainable mobility solutions, encompassing alternative technologies such as electric, hybrid and fuel cells into our research, development and commercialisation plans. This is our endeavour towards shaping the future of mobility while ensuring a clean and green environment”.

DELHY-3W project co-ordinator was The Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (IITD). Air Products USA is the project partner and sponsor by providing the hydrogen refuelling station and management and technical services. Mahindra was hugely involved in developing the vehicle to its final stages. The project has received all necessary permits and approvals from the Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organization (PESO).

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