Status: 08/21/2021 7:29 p.m.
In 1896 Gottlieb Daimler presented the first truck. It developed into a successful model that continues to shape freight transport to this day. 125 years later, truck manufacturers are looking for ways to curb pollutant emissions.
He couldn’t deny his origins – the horse transporter. The driver sat on the box in front, the loading area stretched behind him. What was missing were the drawbar and the horses. He didn’t need them, he had a steering wheel and a motor. 125 years ago Gottlieb Daimler presented the car that was to change the world of transport.
He compared it himself to the horse-drawn carriage. “A good animal, pulls like an ox,” wrote Daimler, “and only drinks when work goes on.” How much he drank is not known. The two-cylinder engine with a cubic capacity of one liter brought four horsepower to the axles. At best, that was enough for a brisk walking pace. The payload was also rather modest: the vehicle could transport a ton. Not the best prerequisites for a global career.
The first truck presented by Gottlieb Daimer in 1896 had 4 hp.
Image: dpa
An idea conquers the world
Sales were also sluggish. It remained with the one copy that was also exported to London. But just two years later, in 1898, the models looked more like a truck. The engine moved forward together with the drive, the power was transferred to the rear wheels. The construction principle of the truck was created and the path to success paved.
Today more than 3.4 million trucks are registered in Germany alone. They have long since become the number one means of transporting goods, before rail and inland waterway vessels. According to the Federal Statistical Office, 3.2 billion tons of goods are transported annually by truck, 320 million, i.e. a tenth of it, by rail, and 188 million tons by inland waterway.
Trucks supply economy and society with production and food, create rolling storage areas for just-in-time production and clog cities and highways. On the A6 between Mannheim and Nuremberg alone, up to 30,000 trucks are counted every day, vehicle to vehicle, and chains of 100 kilometers in both directions often form. There are more and more and they still run on diesel.
Transport turnaround with a key role in climate protection
When transporting goods, trucks emit six times as many greenhouse gases and even seven times as many nitrogen oxides per ton and kilometer as a freight train. Only the pollutant balance of inland waterways is worse here. According to the transport alliance “Allianz pro Schiene”, the transport sector is responsible for 20 percent of greenhouse gases, 95 percent of which come from road traffic.
Because the federal government wants to reduce CO2 emissions by 42 percent compared to 1990 by 2030, the mobility turnaround is now to come. Moving away from fossil fuels, shifting freight transport from road to rail. The truck manufacturers, including the world market leader Daimler, are therefore relying on more environmentally friendly drives.
Two technologies: battery and fuel cell
The inventor of the truck is planning a two-pronged approach. Daimler Truck, a subsidiary of Daimler AG, relies on battery-powered trucks for short distances and low loading weights. Because the ranges of these e-trucks are still limited, trucks with fuel cells should be the concept of the future for long distances. The “fuel” here consists of H2, liquid hydrogen, which is converted into electrical energy by the fuel cell in the car.
The fuel cell has one major advantage over battery-powered vehicles: The refueling times are hardly longer than at the diesel pump. But also a couple of serious disadvantages. The energy required to produce hydrogen by electrolysis from water is twice as high as the energy yield that can later be used in its combustion. The efficiency of the fuel cell is therefore modest. Only around 30 percent of the energy used arrives on the drive axle, just as little as with gasoline or diesel engines. With battery-electric drives, the figure is 70-90 percent.
Another problem: So far there are hardly any hydrogen filling stations in Germany. Daimler is therefore planning to set up a petrol station network together with the mineral oil producer Shell and is calling for the state to participate.
Electricity from renewable energies as the key
The main problem for both types of drive, however, is: If the electricity is to be clean, it has to come from renewable sources. Their share in the overall electricity mix is growing steadily, but almost half still comes from fossil sources, i.e. from coal, crude oil and natural gas. The truck manufacturers are betting that the proportion of renewable energies used to generate electricity will continue to increase.
Daimler is planning a joint venture with its largest competitor, the Volvo Group. Together they want to become one of the largest manufacturers of fuel cell systems. But that will take a few more years. Because while the eActros, the first battery-powered series truck with the star, has been rolling off the assembly line since June, a fuel cell truck is expected to be ready for series production in 2027 at the earliest.
Federal government relies on rail expansion
The second part of the mobility transition announced by the government concerns the shift of freight traffic to the railways. So far, two thirds of all transports have taken place by road, around 20 percent by rail. The share is expected to grow to at least 25 percent by 2030. By then, the federal government plans to spend almost 100 billion euros, primarily on expanding the rail network.
It might be worth it. Even if trucks are only to be powered by renewable energies in the future, rail transport will remain cheaper. The energy efficiency is better and the loading capacity even more. A freight train can transport the same load as 50 trucks – and thus relieve the roads. Nevertheless, the truck’s success should continue unabated. Even 125 years after its invention.