Mazda announced a hydrogen development program for the RENESIS rotary engine, winner of the 2003 International Engine of the Year award. Due to its unique nature, the rotary engine can run on hydrogen with very little modification. The RENESIS engine has the injection, compression, ignition, and exhaust areas separated from each other so no pre-ignition of the gas occurs. Whereas the more common Otto cycle (reciprocating) engine needs substantial development to run on hydrogen to avoid pre-ignition on the intake cycle. This rotary engine has been developed with a dual-fuel system, allowing it to run on either gasoline or hydrogen, offering flexibility to promote the usage of hydrogen fuel and the development of a supporting infrastructure. Mazda is still several years off producing a hydrogen car for customer use, but it is actively pursuing this alternative fuel system with the RX-8.
