LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - Linear generator technology developer Libertine Holdings has been awarded £0.42m in grant funding by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), it announced on Tuesday, as part of the first phase of the Red Diesel Replacement Competition.
The AIM-traded firm said the funding would be used to support further development with MAHLE Powertrain on the decarbonisation of heavy-duty vehicle powertrains, and would finance fuel system adaptations to demonstrate hydrogen and compressed natural gas (CNG) fuel flexibility.

It said the 11-month project would focus on the modification of an existing two-cylinder opposed free piston linear generator, already developed by Libertine and MAHLE Powertrain as part of the government-funded Small Business Research Initiative phase two programme, through which Libertine was awarded £2.1m in funding last year.

The planned modifications would demonstrate the flexibility of linear generators, adapting the technology to allow it to run on blends of CNG and hydrogen ranging from 100% CNG to 100% hydrogen, moving towards the replacement of red diesel in the mining and construction sectors.

"We are delighted to have been awarded further funding to continue to build on our work with MAHLE Powertrain," said chief executive officer Sam Cockerill.

"We believe Libertine's technology will play an essential role on the path to net zero for heavy duty powertrains, complementing battery electrification with clean power from renewable fuels.

"We are grateful to the UK government for their support and look forward to delivering this exciting project."

Libertine said a linear generator sub-system capable of operating on 100% hydrogen could enable the decarbonisation of construction and mining equipment, in the UK and globally, where full battery electrification was not practical.

Compatibility with CNG fuel, already in widespread use, had the potential to accelerate the adoption of such powertrains ahead of the deployment of hydrogen refuelling infrastructure.

Through demonstrating fuel flexibility from CNG through to hydrogen, the company said the linear generator had the potential to "shorten the path" towards net-zero and beyond, establishing it as a long-term solution for transitioning to clean energy as fuel sources evolve.

Additionally, it said the ability to use lower purity hydrogen and hydrogen-CNG blends, while delivering ultra-low nitrous oxide performance, would "de-risk" technology adoption for end-users and reduce the barriers towards full hydrogen adoption.

Those characteristics would have "major benefits" across UK off-highway sectors, allowing for a "faster, lower investment transition" to net-zero, and also offer a "major advantage" in export markets where grid and hydrogen refuelling infrastructure was less mature.

Reporting by Josh White at Sharecast.com.

Email this article to a friend

or share it with one of these popular networks:

• DIGG
• FACEBOOK
• STUMBLEUPON
• MIXX
• YAHOO BUZZ
• DELICIOUS
• REDDIT
• NEWSVINE