Motorcycles produced by Kawasaki made headlines with a hydrogen-powered bike at EICMA last year, and now a number of custom manufacturers are stepping in to show off what a hydrogen-powered motorcycle could look like. There’s a new batch of concept bikes coming out that shows that hydrogen could be the next big thing in motoring. Maybe.
Hydrogen-powered cars are gaining momentum. After all, hydrogen is one of the most abundant molecules on Earth. And, when you burn it, you get water vapor as a byproduct. Manufacturers are paying attention. Honda, for example, will sell a version of its most popular SUV, the CR-V, with a hydrogen engine by 2024. But for motorcycles, we may be coming up with something new.
Now, custom designers are tapping into the potential of hydrogen. Anton Brousseau, one of the three designers behind the Hydra hydrogen concept bike, told BikeEXIF: “Electricity May not fit motorcycle. do you have anything else? Hydrogen is closer to combustion, and it’s closer to that feeling.”
Brousseau, along with Andon Guzhov and Andre Taylforth (who has design experience with Ford and Mercedes-Benz) designed the Hydra as the hydrogen-powered cafe racer of the future, he said. “It has a cafe racer feel. That’s the inspiration. It was just a simple and obvious idea and it was inspired by custom motorcycles.”
The Hydra concept uses a more traditional fuel cell technology, if you can call it that. In a fuel cell, hydrogen is passed through a membrane made of rare earth metals. That creates an electrical charge that can then power the electric motor. While the output is electrical, the input is chemical. “In an EV, all you have is this big box and no heart for it. It remembers the mechanical properties that keep it alive,” Brousseau said.
However, the trick to getting hydrogen into an internal combustion engine is direct injection. Kawasaki has mastered powerful direct fuel injection with the H2 series bikes, which incorporate a powerful supercharger to inject fuel and highly compressed air into the cylinders. Hydrogen requires more air than gasoline, and the system can be modified to take in hydrogen. Kawasaki is planning a new line of bikes electric bicycle will launch in 2025.
Others are also now seeing potential in hydrogen fuel cell technology. tram, the builders of self-balancing scooters, have also introduced a new hydrogen electric motorcycle concept. Called the APEX H2, Segway’s first concept motorcycle made big promises, including a top speed of 150 km/h, or 93 mph, with a power output of 60 kW, or 80 hp. force.
The specifics of where you get the hydrogen, the dangers of driving with a high-pressure tank between your legs, and other logistical issues still need to be worked out. But it is being used. Since hydrogen only emits steam when used, many forklifts used in homes, such as warehouses, are now powered by hydrogen.
But with so much attention paid to hydrogen and its potential, especially in the automotive world, it’s possible we’ll be trying out a hydrogen-producing bike in the next few years.
