Review on Research Progress and Industrial Development Path of New Energy Tractor: From Field Load Mechanism to Engineering Implementation

Under China’s agricultural “double-carbon” strategy and the implementation of national emission standards, new energy tractors have become the core direction of green and low-carbon transformation of agricultural machinery, forming five power technology systems: pure electric, series extended-range hybrid, parallel hybrid, series-parallel hybrid and hydrogen fuel cell. Unlike road vehicles, tractors in field operations are subjected to random impact loads caused by abrupt changes in soil and terrain, and to harsh conditions of ultra-wide temperature ranges, high vibration, mud, and dust; directly transplanting automotive three-electric components and algorithms reduces reliability and shortens component life. The global industry is transitioning from principle prototypes to small-batch commercialization, and medium- and large-horsepower heavy-duty models have not yet broken the industrialization bottleneck. Based on farmland random-load mechanisms, this paper reviews the technical evolution and R&D system differences of new energy tractors at home and abroad, analyzes the energy conversion mechanisms and working-condition adaptation boundaries of the five configurations, and identifies key bottlenecks in the agricultural-machinery-specific three-electric system, adaptive energy management, electrical architecture and thermal management. By comparing the performance gaps among simulation, bench and field tests, the core contradiction of R&D iteration is clarified. PEST-SWOT analysis evaluates the industrial environment, and whole-life-cycle economy is compared across business entities. Differentiated development paths by horsepower segment and six-dimensional industrial countermeasures (basic data, specialized parts, standards, business models, infrastructure, operation and maintenance) are proposed. The results show that the core bottleneck is not prototype trial-production capability but systematic problems: shortage of specialized parts, lack of a farmland load database, weak simulation-field closed-loop iteration, and lagging supporting and operation-maintenance systems. This study provides theoretical support and engineering reference for new energy tractor iteration, pilot-scale maturation, large-scale development and policy formulation.