The Project
The Team
We are a group of third-year students at ISAT (Institut Supérieur de l'Automobile et des Transports), an engineering school . We founded the IH2 association in 2024. Our goal is to work on the retrofit of internal combustion engines to hydrogen, with the aim of promoting hydrogen within the student community.
The Technology
Hydrogen retrofitting involves replacing or adapting certain parts of a vehicle's engine that runs on fossil fuels to enable it to run on hydrogen.
This approach serves a dual ecological purpose. Firstly, it aims to reduce pollution during the vehicle's use, as hydrogen combustion is far less polluting compared to traditional fuels. In addition, retrofitting extends the life of an existing engine, thus avoiding the manufacture of new engines.
IH2 positions itself as one of the pioneers of student-driven hydrogen initiatives.
Particularly in France, where the creation of a internal combustion engine running on hydrogen by non-graduate students has never been achieved.
Our Goals
Performing an initial retofit
The primary objective of our project is to convert an internal combustion engine for the first time in order to better understand the challenges involved in retrofitting combustion engines to run on hydrogen, and to prepare for achieving the subsequent goals.
Improve the engine for use in another ISAT project
After the engine has been started, the objective of the project will be to enhance and improve its reliability in order to integrate it into a vehicle from another ISAT project. A specific set of technical requirements will therefore need to be met to participate in competition.
Integrate the engine into the vehicle developed in collaboration with another project.
IH2 will need to collaborate with another project to integrate the engine into the vehicle, as well as designing the storage and distribution system for hydrogen within the vehicle.
Become a hydrogen propulsion hub within ISAT.
IH2 should then be able to provide engines to other ISAT projects, becoming a hydrogen propulsion hub. The project could also open up to other uses of hydrogen, for example in fuel cells or for aviation.