Hyliion awarded government contract with US Navy

Hyliion Holdings Corp., a developer of sustainable electricity-producing technology, has been awarded a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) government contract by the U.S. Navy. Phase 1 of the award, N241–060, will allow Hyliion to create a preliminary design of a modular generator system that integrates the Navy’s specifications with Hyliion’s KARNO generator technology.

Hyliion’s KARNO generator is a linear heat unit capable of operating on more than 20 fuels, including propane.

With this contract, Hyliion will showcase a design concept of the KARNO generator in a megawatt-scale modular system. The system will be engineered to offer a versatile and flexible approach to meet the U.S. government’s unmanned surface vessel (USV) cross-platform requirements, scalable to various power needs and adaptable to the available platform space. Hyliion plans to leverage its foundational 200-kilowatt KARNO genset, combining multiple units together to achieve the desired power output.

“We are honored to receive this SBIR contract from the United States Navy,” says Thomas Healy, founder and CEO of Hyliion. “This award is a testament to the KARNO generator’s expected ability to offer efficient, flexible and low-maintenance power generation. We are excited to contribute to the Navy’s mission and explore higher power solutions for their USV initiative.”

The SBIR program is an initiative that supports scientific excellence and technological advancements by investing federal research funds in key American priorities aimed at strengthening the national economy and defense infrastructure. The primary objective of the N241-060 program is to develop and demonstrate a megawatt scale, ultra-reliable and efficient USV modular generator concept tailored to the Navy’s requirements. This concept involves configuring smaller kilowatt-scale building block power units in a high-density package to achieve a 4,000-hour no-touch maintenance periodicity for continuous operation in a naval environment.

The KARNO generator, with its ability to operate on multiple fuels, including NATO F-76, is ideally suited for the Navy’s USV program, according to the company. The system’s hermetically sealed architecture, with only one moving part per shaft, is designed for maintenance-free operation over long running hours.

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