Stellantis has teamed up with Aramco to test the use of e-fuels in vehicles with internal combustion engines. Accordingly, millions of Stellantis vehicles in the existing fleet could be fuelled with e-fuels.
Stellantis testete die E-Fuels-Verträglichkeit von Motorenfamilien.
Stellantis
The European-US automotive manufacturer Stellantis sees the use of synthetic fuels as an option for decarbonization. To this end, the automotive group has tested and validated 28 engine families that will be or were built between 2014 and 2029, both as gasoline and diesel engines. The tests, conducted jointly with energy and chemical company Aramco, showed that 24 engine families of European vehicles manufactured since 2014 (Euro 6) are compatible with the expected e-fuels compositions. They could fuel e-fuels without any powertrain modifications. This means that in Europe alone, up to 28 million Stellantis vehicles in the existing fleet could use e-fuels. It is estimated that the potential CO2 reduction from 2025 to 2050 is up to 400 million tons.
The validation protocol includes tests on tailpipe emissions, startability, engine power, reliability endurance, oil dilution, fuel tank, fuel lines and filters, among others. The tests used e-fuels substitutes in accordance with applicable fuel standards. Aramco is currently working on two demonstration plants to explore the production of synthetic fuels. In Saudi Arabia, Aramco and ENOWA (Neom Energy and Water Company) are working to demonstrate the production of synthetic gasoline for passenger cars. In Spain, research is underway with Repsol to produce low-carbon synthetic diesel and kerosene for cars and aircraft.
E-fuels as an Accompanying Measure
"Drop-in eFuels can have a massive and almost immediate impact on reducing the CO2 emissions of the existing vehicle fleet, offering our customers an easy and economically efficient option to reduce their carbon footprint — one as simple as choosing a different fuel pump at the station, with no additional modification to their vehicles", said Ned Curic, Stellantis Chief Engineering and Technology Officer. Regardless, Stellantis' Dare Forward 2030 plan continues to focus on electric mobility. By the end of the decade, all new passenger cars in Europe and half of passenger cars and light trucks in the U.S. are expected to be battery electric vehicles.