Exploring hydrogen technology to power next-gen farming

As the transition to renewable energy gathers pace in Australia, researchers are looking at ways to incorporate hydrogen fuel cells into the powertrains of tractors and other farming equipment that has been fuelled by diesel for generations.

Federation University is collaborating with the CSIRO and industry partner Foton Mobility – an Australian-owned distributor of new energy heavy vehicles – to develop simulations and perform small-scale system-integration studies with the aim of retrofitting diesel powertrains in tractors with a hydrogen fuel cell-electric system.

Dr Surbhi Sharma, Associate Professor of Hydrogen Technologies, says there are clear advantages to hydrogen fuel cells being considered for the agricultural sector, which is the second largest contributor to Australia's greenhouse gas emissions.

"Currently, agricultural equipment use diesel and these have to be phased as the sector looks to decarbonise," Assoc Prof Sharma said.

"The significant advantage with the systems we are looking at is that they use hydrogen and oxygen from the air to produce electricity and water – there are no emissions except water vapour. This technology does not burn hydrogen – unlike what many people might think when they hear of hydrogen technology replacing diesel or petrol.

"It's important to note that these hydrogen systems generate electricity but use a completely electrochemical process. With no internal combustion, the hydrogen combines with oxygen to make water and electricity, with a small amount of electricity used to generate an initial electrochemical reaction.

"The farm equipment will also have a small battery similar to the current equipment, making it a fuel cell-electric hybrid. The interesting part is having no internal combustion engine – it's a very different system whose application into tractors will be studied as part of this project."

These systems include several components, and the project will look at how these perform in a real-life agricultural environment while learning about the degradation of these components in seasonal and ambient conditions and at varying degrees of load and operation cycles.

One of the disadvantages of battery-only systems is that bigger-capacity batteries add significant weight. Farm equipment and heavy transport or off-road equipment are already heavy vehicles, and these would require much more power for their operation.

Hydrogen fuel cell systems generate current as long as hydrogen is in supply, but they aren't weighed down by excessively heavy batteries, unlike battery-only systems.

"With tractors, the more load you have, the more soil compaction will happen, which is not what farmers want. They can't afford the tractors to be heavy beyond a certain point," Assoc Prof Sharma said.

Other technologies in development like biogas and biodiesel do not eliminate tailpipe emissions, and these also reduce the peak power and efficiency of farm equipment.

A second key consideration for not adopting battery electric systems for agriculture is the charging requirements.

"Farmers can't afford to be charging their tractors for 12 hours or more at a time during their peak season." Dr Surbhi Sharma

"We are looking at large-scale decarbonisation with the entire agriculture sector going for electric or hybrid tractors. If they're only dependent on batteries, that will put excessive strain on the electricity grid.

"If all the tractors are being charged at night, as well as a growing number of electric cars, this load would be too much for the grid to handle. This is why we need a mix of hydrogen and battery technologies to come into the transportation and agriculture sectors together."

Assoc Prof Sharma began working in hydrogen fuel cell technology development in the United Kingdom in 2011, including researching the materials and components that go into fuel cell systems.

She says there are exciting opportunities to develop the technology for agriculture in Australia, and the project was looking for a PhD to join the CSIRO's Industry PhD Program - a fully-funded, four-year research training program. The candidate would also have the opportunity to work with Foton Mobility and at the CSIRO Clayton facility, engaging with a variety of experts in the field.

Assoc Prof Sharma is also keen to continue the series of hydrogen technology workshops in Gippsland, having held the first one in December 2023.

"These workshops are intended to lead to actionable steps by Federation, the Council, the industry partners or industries interested in collaboratively working on projects. We really need to push for more projects, research, and training-related initiatives into public space and increase social awareness on these topics," Assoc Prof Sharma said.

"There is a lot of interest in decarbonisation and tackling climate change – these are very interesting times to be in with the entire world trying to transition.

"There are many things researchers can explore and do, and that's what is most exciting about research. With the expertise I've built in the UK, I feel there's a lot I can bring in, contribute to, and develop here in Australia because we're a bit behind Europe, the US, and other countries in these technologies. There's a lot of ground to cover."

Learn more about the CSIRO’s Industry PhD Program