More hours on the field thanks to LNG

Following on from the T6 with CNG drive, New Holland Agriculture presents a further milestone for even more sustainable agriculture with the T7 with LNG drive.

The new prototype New Holland Agriculture T7 Methane Power LNG is the first tractor in the world to run on liquefied gas. Source: New Holland

With the prototype of the T7 Methane Power LNG, New Holland Agriculture is taking the next step towards more sustainable agriculture through the use of alternative fuels. After all, farmers still need powerful tractors that can run on a round-the-clock basis. But the carbon footprint of a farm is an increasingly important factor too, and diesel tractors have a negative impact in the long term. CNG and biogas in particular are currently the ideal solutions in terms of ensuring higher machine performance while at the same time reducing emissions and operating costs compared to diesel.

As tractors should ideally be in operation for hours on end without interruption, it was obvious that liquefied LNG with its higher energy density should also be used for field work instead of “just” CNG. And that’s exactly what New Holland Agriculture is now enabling. The new tractor, the T7 Methane Power LNG, will more than double autonomy compared to a CNG powertrain while at the same time improving overall sustainability in agriculture. Compared to the T6 Methane Power CNG, this means a fourfold increase in fuel capacity.

Compared to the T6 Methane Power with CNG drive, the new LNG tractor enables a fourfold increase in fuel capacity and thus clearly more working hours until the next refuelling. Source: New Holland

The pre-production prototype of the T7 Methane Power LNG offers unparalleled performance for an alternative-fuel tractor. With its 270-hp engine, it delivers the same output and torque as a diesel tractor and boasts a high level of autonomy without the need for additional tanks. Powered by liquefied biogas, it also runs and operates on a virtually entirely carbon-neutral basis. The patented, actively temperature-controlled fuel system developed for this pre-production prototype includes a cryogenic stainless steel tank that is shaped to match its diesel counterparts.

The entire new drive technology of the T7 Methane Power LNG has already been put through its paces by numerous farms with varying application requirements. So the time is now ripe for serial production and marketing of the world’s first LNG tractor, complementing the existing T6 Methane Power with its CNG drive by New Holland and CNH Industrial’s broad portfolio of alternative drive systems.

The 270 hp LNG tractor offers the same power delivery and torque as a diesel tractor. Source: New Holland

In the UK, agricultural machinery specialist CNH Industrial has also been working since March 2021 with Bennamann Ltd., who also offer a liquefaction system that can be easily screwed onto an existing biogas processing plant. Bennamann’s patented air-free cryogenic storage tanks keep the gas in a liquid state at minus 162 °C, creating a new source of clean energy for the T7 Methane Power LNG tractor. In addition, this technology enables the transport of LNG to wherever it is needed, in a similar way to diesel. This means that farms that do not have the ability to produce LNG on site can still benefit from its advantages, and flexible refuelling in the field is also possible during periods of intense operation.

The combined expertise and resources of CNH Industrial and Bennamann enable farmers around the world to integrate this scalable and affordable energy-independent system into their farms. At the same time, it offers new opportunities to monetize or recycle manure, slurry and biogenic residues. These include fuel production at stable costs, the sale of excess biogas on the open market, the production of 100% natural fertiliser and the conversion of excess biogas into electricity for export to the grid or for local use. (pd/jas, 15 December 2022)