Using hydrogen to power vehicles is anything but a new idea, but so far things have been stalled for various reasons. Skipping the conspiracy theories, the limited hydrogen storage capacity was one of the biggest issues, but guess what: things are on the move, properly. Welcome the Hy-Cycle, one of the latest projects revealed by a specialized department of the University of New South Wales in Australia.
The Associate Professor Kondo-Francois Aguey-Zinsou speaks about the Hy-Cycle in the video after the jump and he mentions that continued research has finally made strong progress in developing of hydrogen storing solutions. The small canister fixed to the Hy-Cycle can accommodate around 100 liters of hydrogen, which will be used by the fuel cell for producing enough electricity for around 77 miles (125 km), with water being the only byproduct in the process.
The new materials which store hydrogen can have the mentioned quantity down to just 50 grams, in an ultra-compact form, while being safe to use and easy to refill. Being a bike which doesn’t rely on batteries, the Hy-Cycle doesn’t need battery recharging, and a full hydrogen recharge is worth around $2 (€) and takes about 30 minutes.
Of course, there is the problem of hydrogen supplies and the public accessibility to them, but this is only a minor obstacle. A leased canister program can be easily developed, so riders will only spend few minutes replacing the spent canister with a full one and then get going. Even more, as the hydrogen storing materials and technologies are becoming better, we can hope that some entrepreneur will pick this idea up and turn it into a mass-production vehicle that’s both fun and even more environmentally-friendly. Also, a nice turn to the motorcycle segment would be highly appreciated…
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