cars of the future

We are doing research to improve both fuels and the fuel efficiency and environmental performance of the internal combustion engine, which will continue to power the vast majority of cars in 25 years. But we are also looking beyond conventional engines towards new developments for the future.

Homogeneous ChargeCompression Ignition (HCCI)
This new technology aims to combine the efficiency of a diesel engine with the lower emissions of a conventional petrol engine. Better understanding of the chemistry and combustion characteristics could lead to an improvement in fuel economy of up to 30% compared with today’s engines - and significantly lower emissions. Controlling the ignition timing, maintaining stability and reducing unburned hydrocarbon and carbon monoxide emissions will be critical to realising the long-term potential of HCCI.

Hybrids
Hybrid vehicles combine an internal combustion engine with an electric motor. The petrol engine is used for steady speeds, while the electric motor gives extra power during more energy-intensive phases, like starting and acceleration. In city driving, hybrids can be 50% more fuel efficient than traditional engines. We believe that continued development of this technology could have a significant impact on cost, energy consumption and CO2 emissions.

Hydrogen fuel cells
Originally developed for the space programme, fuel cells combine hydrogen and oxygen to produce electricity. The only by-product is water. Unlike batteries in existing electric cars (which need to be recharged every 150 kilometres), fuel cells can provide power for as long as hydrogen fuel is available. While many consider it promising, hydrogen faces a number of technological hurdles before it can become a mainstream motor fuel. It is expensive to produce, poses transport and storage issues and, at this point, lacks the necessary infrastructure to enable easy roadside refuelling.

Researchers at ExxonMobil are working on a novel solution which could eliminate the problems of storing hydrogen inside a car: by producing it, on-board, from liquid fuels. If we are successful, it would mean that existing petrol stations could continue to be used, which would accelerate the widespread introduction of this technology.