Automotive Engineering - April 2024 - 18

eFuels: An Alternative
to the Alternative
COVER STORY
it because then we bring fossil CO2 into the atmosphere,
and that's what we want to avoid. "
ZF's 8-Speed HP Gen4 Transmission can be used with conventional, mild hybrid
and plug-in hybrid powertrains.
Suppliers keep a foot in ICE-land
New vehicles that burn low- or no-carbon fuels still
need new components, and ZF is one supplier keeping
its ICE facilities running, or even expanding. In
February 2024, ZF announced it would invest $500
million in its Gray Court, South Carolina, flex manufacturing
facility, where it builds parts for traditional ICE
and e-mobility technologies used in passenger cars
and commercial vehicles.
ZF builds 8- and 9-speed transitions at Gray Court,
which opened in 2010. ZF's new investment includes
$200 million for a production line that will supply three
major U.S. commercial vehicle manufacturers with new
transmissions for mild hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles.
Gray Court produced the first of these PowerLine
8-speed automatic transmissions in late 2023, and ZF
expects to produce 200,000 of these transmissions a
year by 2025. As Grey Court's expansion continues, the
site will produce propulsion systems for traditional ICE,
PHEV and EVs in both passenger and commercial segments.
As ZF board member Stephan von Schuckmann
said in a statement at the investment announcement,
" [Gray Court] is our first ever to mirror the transition that
the industry and the world is now navigating. "
ZF will also build transmissions for passenger cars at
Gray Court, including its 8HP Gen4 PHEV transmission
(already found on the BMW 7 Series and X5) starting
in 2025 as part of ZF's " local-for-local " strategy. The
8-speed plug-in hybrid transmission can produce up to
160 kW and 332 lb-ft (450 Nm).
The 30,000-foot view of low- and no-carbon fuels in
Despite its H2 station closures in the U.S., Shell continues efforts to use hydrogen
for transportation, especially for larger vehicles.
are enough, " Schultze told SAE Media. " Frankly speaking, if you do a
one-dimensional solution, then you have to live with all the difficulties. "
Beyond problems with EV charging infrastructure and cost, Scultze
pointed out that even if all the cars in Europe were switched to EVs
tomorrow, many old vehicles would simply be sold and used elsewhere.
eFuels provide a low-carbon solution for all of them, he said,
despite Europe's political hesitancy to embrace petroleum alternatives
other than EVs after Dieselgate.
" Even though manufacturers like Mazda were not involved in this
scandal, it means there's some kind of reservation on the political
side, " he said. " We have been trying to make clear that an engine is
nothing bad. The big problem only comes when we put fossil fuels in
18 April 2024
the automotive industry reveals plenty of potential wins,
along with even more potential problems. Previous liquid
fuel alternatives like corn-based ethanol and algae fuels
were promoted with big promises but have not yet replaced
petroleum products. Mazda's Schultze said we're
still in the promising stage of eFuels, including the possibility
that they could be used as sustainable aviation
fuel (SAF). He's transparent about the challenges ahead.
" At this point in time, there are no mass-production
facilities [for eFuels], " he said. " There are only a few
research production facilities and they are producing
hundreds or 1000s of liters. "
Right now, with these low volumes, eFuel prices remain
high, he said, but airlines could help make synthetic
fuels happen.
" Aviation fuel and car fuels, they are not competitors, "
he said. " eFuels will be there, at least for SAF,
but we hope and we believe it makes absolute sense
to have eFuels there also for cars and vans and trucks.
Frankly speaking, CO2 is CO2. "
AUTOMOTIVE ENGINEERING
FROM TOP: ZF; SHELL
Automotive Engineering - April 2024

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