JCB publicly unveiled its new port fuel injected, 4.8L inline-four hydrogen combustion engine (448 ABH2)”the companys zero-carbon emissions solution for construction and agricultural equipment”at the Conexpo 2023 show in Las Vegas as part of the International Fluid Power Exposition (IFPE).

JCB is investing £100 million in the project to produce super-efficient hydrogen engines. A team of 150 engineers is working on the initiative and more than 50 prototypes have already been manufactured at JCBs UK engine plant.

Prototype JCB hydrogen engines are already powering backhoe loader and Loadall telescopic handler machines. JCB has also installed one of the hydrogen engines into a 7.5 tonne Mercedes truck”a retrofit that was completed in just days.

JCB has also unveiled its very own designed and built mobile refueling unit to take the fuel to the machines. The unit has enough hydrogen gas to fill 16 hydrogen backhoe loaders and is able to be transported either on the back of a modified JCB Fastrac tractor or on a trailer.

JCBs commitment to reducing emissions goes back almost 25 years and the latest diesel engines designed to comply with European Stage V regulations have already delivered a 97 per cent reduction in NOx emissions since 1999 and a 98 per cent reduction in particulates. In addition, JCBs drive to reduce fuel consumption means todays JCB machines use 50 per cent less fuel on average than those manufactured more than a decade ago. This has saved 16 billion litres of fuel”equivalent to 53 million tonnes of CO2.

JCB has also been developing electric technology to meet customers needs for zero-carbon products. While battery electric is suitable for smaller machines that do fewer hours and typically use less fuel, larger machines have a higher energy requirement. This would result in larger batteries, which would take longer to charge, making them less suitable for machines that work multiple daily shifts and do not have the available downtime to recharge.

As a result, JCB has concentrated its development of electric machines on its compact range, including the 525-60E Loadall telehandler and the 19C-1E mini excavator”the worlds first electric mini excavator.