Accelerating the development and industrial application of new energy-saving technologies, accelerating the diversified use of alternative energy sources and accelerating the development of the remanufacturing industry: this is the approach by which turbochargers will speed up energy saving and emission reduction.
Xing Min, Executive Vice President and Secretary-General of the China Internal Combustion Engine Industry Association, said that one of the key tasks of the 12th Five-Year Plan for China's internal combustion engine industry is to develop engines for low-consumption, low-emission vehicles and for various alternative fuels. He said that the development strategy of the entire internal combustion engine and turbocharger industry is to achieve, by around 2020, the ambitious goal of turning China from a large producer into a strong producer, and to make an active contribution to China's economic transformation and upgrading and to better social and ecological outcomes.
The reporter found that the industry's 12th Five-Year Plan lists the following as key product areas: diesel engines for commercial vehicles and passenger cars and gasoline engines for passenger cars that meet national emission regulations; high-power-density diesel engines for all types of special-purpose vehicles; internal combustion engines for hybrid passenger cars and range-extended electric vehicles; engines for alternative fuels such as natural gas, methanol and biofuels; and components for advanced internal combustion engines.
China's internal combustion engine products currently face a number of prominent problems in energy saving and emission reduction: overall energy efficiency is relatively low, the share of advanced energy-saving engines is small, alternative-fuel engines are still at an early stage, the foundations of green manufacturing and remanufacturing are weak, and industrial policy for turbochargers needs further improvement. Addressing these, Xing Min pointed out that the internal combustion engine industry is an important basic industry in China: it is technology-intensive, closely linked to other sectors, has a long industrial chain and broad coverage, strongly stimulates consumption, and is a focus of investment in equipment manufacturing worldwide. China's main approach to the next stage of energy saving and emission reduction for internal combustion engines must be based on the needs of national energy security, the response to climate change and the competitiveness of the industry. It should take the reduction of energy and resource consumption and of CO2 emissions as its main thread and lower fuel consumption as its overall goal, let companies play the leading role, and concentrate on key breakthroughs: accelerating the development and industrial application of new energy-saving engine technologies, accelerating the diversified use of alternative energy in engines, and accelerating the development of the remanufacturing industry.
Specifically, Xing Min believes that solving the main problems of energy saving and emission reduction for China's internal combustion engines depends on four areas of work:
First, solve the common key problems in raising engine energy efficiency. For gasoline engines, the focus is on promoting turbocharged direct injection, mastering core combustion and control technologies, and developing key components such as direct-injection fuel systems and turbochargers. For diesel engines, the focus is on promoting electronically controlled high-pressure fuel injection systems, high-efficiency turbocharging and charge-air cooling systems and exhaust aftertreatment systems, and on bringing energy-saving diesel products into volume production. The aim is that by the end of the 12th Five-Year Plan period the overall specific fuel consumption of Chinese internal combustion engines will be 6%–10% lower than at the end of the 11th Five-Year Plan period.
Second, reduce energy and resource consumption over the whole life of engine products, from production to end use. The focus is on saving energy in both production and use, and on green manufacturing that uses little energy and material. Engine remanufacturing should be developed faster: remanufacturing technology should be actively researched, remanufacturing processes improved, a sound management system established for the recovery of end-of-life products, their remanufacture and their use in the market, and a group of key engine remanufacturing companies fostered.
Third, promote the development of alternative-fuel engines. The focus is on applying dedicated natural gas and dual-fuel combustion technology in vehicle engines, gasoline/methanol fuel technology in passenger-car gasoline engines, and diesel/methanol combustion technology in heavy-duty vehicle diesel engines, and on solving the reliability and corrosion-resistance problems of key fuel-supply system components.
Fourth, improve policies and regulations. Draw up regulations on access to the internal combustion engine industry; issue entry conditions for engine manufacturers, to curb low-level investment and blind, duplicated expansion; draw up rules for phasing out obsolete products and step up the elimination of high-consumption, outdated engines; establish a sound system of energy-saving and emission-reduction standards for turbochargers, and draw up technical standards for energy-saving engines, fuel consumption limits and test standards for energy-saving engines, technical standards for alternative-fuel engines and standards for remanufactured engines; and study and formulate incentives and preferential policies for energy saving and emission reduction in internal combustion engines.
