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In right now’s information that makes you hmmm… A few current information gadgets from some well-known organizations caught my eye, not simply because they’re each engaged on hydrogen gasoline cell motorbike tasks, but in addition as a result of the names of each establishments have a sure cachet within the tech world that may lend respectability to their work it doesn’t matter what it could be.
Earlier than we go any additional, I ought to clarify that CleanTechnica not covers any information about hydrogen gasoline cell vehicles, or at the very least not about hydrogen for small- or medium-sized automobiles, which is an editorial determination that displays the truth that there are such a lot of points with hydrogen, from manufacturing to distribution to shelling out to its use as a “gasoline” for transportation that in comparison with battery-electric automobiles, it’s clearly a dud. And sure, we all know the oft-touted statistic that hydrogen is “probably the most ample ingredient within the universe,” which makes it sound prefer it’s straightforward to only go seize an enormous load of hydrogen anytime we need to, however is definitely type of a non sequitur which isn’t germane to the viability of hydrogen automobiles.
We used to often cowl hydrogen automobile growth up to now, however our long-time readers have in all probability observed CleanTechnica’s stance on hydrogen automobiles and the so-called hydrogen economic system has modified over time. It has change into clear that hydrogen as a clear tech resolution for transportation isn’t a viable possibility for many use instances, nonetheless, habit to hopium is certainly a think about that trade, no matter the entire many challenges that hydrogen proponents would wish to resolve first so as to implement the know-how on any vital scale. Mike Barnard has executed quite a lot of deep dives into the feasibility of hydrogen for transportation, amongst different issues, which illuminate numerous the magical pondering in that sector, so if you happen to’re , perhaps begin right here or right here or right here. That being stated, let’s take a gander on the two hydrogen motorbike tasks which have gotten some media play just lately.
First, from MIT Know-how Evaluation we be taught that MIT’s Electrical Automobile Group (which seems to be an extracurricular membership, not a division inside the college) has been engaged on a prototype hydrogen motorbike, and whoever wrote the article determined to go together with a clickbait headline. “The way forward for bikes may very well be hydrogen” is a somewhat huge stretch, however hey, I’m positive it will get extra eyeballs that approach. The issue is that for the layman, studying the piece would possibly make them consider that hydrogen bikes are a factor now, which they’re most decidedly not. And among the quotes within the piece are type of wild contemplating how easy it will have been to perform a little extra analysis about using hydrogen in automobiles earlier than making among the claims.
In line with Aditya Mehrotra, a grad scholar who’s main the mission, “We’re hoping to make use of this mission as an opportunity to begin conversations round ‘small hydrogen’ programs that might enhance demand, which may result in the event of extra infrastructure. We hope the mission may help discover new and inventive purposes for hydrogen.” Critically? Conversations round small hydrogen programs? New and inventive purposes for hydrogen? Hmmm.
After which there’s this gem, from one other group member, a sophomore in mechanical engineering: “Proper now we’re hydrogen as a result of it looks like one thing that’s been much less explored than different applied sciences for making sustainable transportation.” Face, meet palm.
I’m positive there are some learnings that might come from a mission like this which may very well be utilized to different industries, however I used to be a bit confused to listen to statements like these from college students at one of many high tech colleges on the earth. Nonetheless, if you happen to discover this mission intriguing, you’ll be able to learn the complete piece right here. [Update: Evidently this article on the project slipped through the CleanTechnica policy committee and was published in January.]
The opposite hydrogen motorbike mission, dubbed Hydrocycle, was introduced in a press launch from Fraunhofer IWU and titled as “The Motorbike for the Hydrogen Age.” This mission isn’t solely a Fraunhofer enterprise, however is definitely the trouble of a “German-Czech consortium of analysis establishments and manufacturing firms,” which additionally contains WätaS Wärmetauscher Sachsen GmbH, 1to1design, Czech Technical College, and ÚJV Řež. Every of these companions are engaged on totally different points of the mission, as laid out right here:
“Within the Hydrocycle mission, Czech companions are engaged on automobile growth, advancing work packages associated to automobile construction, ergonomics, and packaging (becoming the know-how into the out there house). German mission companions are specializing in the powertrain. WätaS Wärmetauscher Sachsen GmbH is creating a brand new technology of gasoline cell stacks as the premise for the powertrain; Fraunhofer IWU helps the event of latest manufacturing applied sciences and the advance of stack functionalities with the Reference Manufacturing unit.H2. The Chemnitz analysis institute can also be answerable for system dimensioning and packaging. And the IWU is in control of making certain a clean interface between automobile and gasoline cell system growth.”
That’s all nicely and good, as analysis and growth processes in tasks like these may end up in enhancements or improvements that may be utilized throughout totally different disciplines. Nonetheless, this press launch isn’t solely titled “The Motorbike for the Hydrogen Age,” however it additionally contains an AI-generated picture with the caption, “That is what a future motorbike with hydrogen gasoline cell propulsion may appear to be. The deliberate, ready-to-drive demonstrator might be accomplished by the tip of 2025.” And that, of us, is a positive technique to get your hopium mission printed on-line by web sites which might be additionally on the lookout for clickbait content material (a fast net search unearthed at the very least 4 current articles main with that AI picture) with little to no regard for whether or not the mission will ever be greater than a prototype or analysis automobile.
Till subsequent time, hold your skeptic hat on and your vaporware radar activated, as a result of it’s a wild world on the market on the net, even within the clear tech trade.
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