India’s commitment to carbon neutrality is significantly shaping the future architecture of commercial vehicle powertrains. While the use of CO₂-free technologies such as battery-electric drivetrains has already been successfully demonstrated across various applications, challenges related to limited range and the lack of high-power charging infrastructure continue to hinder widespread adoption, particularly for productivity-critical commercial vehicles.
This has shifted the spotlight toward sustainable fuels, which offer the advantage of fast refueling times. Among these, hydrogen internal combustion engines (H₂ ICE) have gained increasing attention in recent years. In regions such as the European Union, the primary motivation for hydrogen is CO₂ reduction. In contrast, for markets like India, hydrogen also presents a strategic opportunity for reducing dependency on fossil fuel imports.
Over the past four years, AVL has carried out multiple performance and emission development projects across various H₂ ICE configurations. A key enabler in these projects has been AVL’s Rapid Prototyping Engine Management System (RPEMS), featuring mature application software (ASW) designed to support port fuel injection (PFI, MPI), direct injection (DI), and high-pressure direct injection (HPDI) with diesel pilot. The system supports both steady-state and transient operation and includes functionality for exhaust aftertreatment control, such as single or dual-dosing SCR systems.
For series production projects, AVL emphasizes compatibility with existing engine control strategies. Particularly for OEMs with in-house controls development, extending current functionalities to include H₂ ICE operation is more attractive than developing entirely new software from scratch. To validate this, AVL has adapted both its diesel-based (quality-controlled) and gas-based (quantity-controlled) software architectures to manage various hydrogen combustion strategies. Hybrid configurations are also possible, where standard EMS handles torque and air path control, while AVL RPEMS manages hydrogen injection, ignition, and lambda control, enabling early-stage concept evaluation on engine testbeds or in vehicles.
Additionally, robust detection and response to irregular combustion events such as knocking, misfire, and early or late pre-ignition, sometimes accompanied by backfire, are essential for ensuring engine protection and durability.
This paper presents testbed results comparing diesel-based and gas-based control strategies applied to advanced H₂ ICE models. It also discusses AVL’s approach to irregular combustion diagnostics and the corresponding protective control measures.