When we were little, many of us were fascinated with the big machines that make our world go round. Although we may have forgotten about them, New Holland just gave us another reason to reminisce. The recently revealed New Holland NH2 is a tractor based on their T6000 line with one fundamental difference: it’s powered by an emission-free hydrogen fuel cell.
While at first this may not seem like a remarkable achievement, the new tractor shows how alternative fuel technologies are making inroads into areas where you would least expect them. The NH2′s fuel cell battery creates no emissions during operation and generates around 106 horsepower. It runs on an electric motor which is powered for roughly 1.5 to 2 hours on a single hydrogen tank. Granted this is not much, but this is still a prototype.
The NH2 is not the first heavy-duty machine to use alternative fuel technologies, but it is the first one designed to be put towards commercial use. Testing on the prototype machines will begin soon with an expected release in 3 years.
+ New Holland
Via Farmers Weekly Interactive
this is interesting… is this a step towards fossil fuel independence on an industrial scale? i\\\’ll wondered about the applicability of alt fuels in the context of heavy machinery. My limited understanding was that electric-powered heavy machinery just isn\\\’t going to cut it…