Hydrogen fuel-cell ebikes can be 'recharged' in seconds

https://newatlas.com/ ^ | June 15, 2024 | Paul Ridden

[Jonty30]

While most ebikes on the road today will come with a battery pack, some are riding down the hydrogen fuel-cell cycle path. HydroRide not only has fuel-cell ebikes available, but also a compact refill station to top up H2 canisters. The global ebike market is estimated to grow in value to almost US$120 billion by 2030, and it's not surprising. Whether commuting or leisure riding, pedal-assist bikes take some of the strain out of the journey while also opening up routes for older riders. The vast majority of ebikes on the street roll with Li-ion batteries, but they can spend a good deal of time parked up charging, Swiss tech company HydroRide Europe AG is hoping to tempt e-cyclists over to the hydrogen fuel cell camp with the promise of super-fast top-ups for its range of city ebikes. And even has a compact hydrogen generator in its product portfolio, which can produce 20 g of hydrogen from 200 ml of purified water in around five-to-six hours. The company says that its refill station can even be powered by solar panels instead of the grid to produce green hydrogen, though efficiency and operational figures don't appear to have been revealed.

[Jonty30]

When it comes to kinetic crashes, hydrogen cars are perfectly safe. The fuel leaks immediately and you are left with an empty tank in seconds, in the event of a breach.

There might be some danger if it there is a source of ignition, but that’s no different than any fuel source, but it is safer than lithium.

Are Hydrogen Cars Safe?
HFCVs are widely considered as safe as any other car; since the high-pressure tanks are designed to survive even the highest-speed crashes without leaking or breaching. While hydrogen skeptics routinely cite the Hindenburg explosion of 1937, the hydrogen tanks and their hardware would likely survive even if the rest of the car were destroyed in a crash. No injuries or deaths specific to the hydrogen components have been recorded in the relatively small number of HFCVs sold to date.

https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a41103863/hydrogen-cars-fcev/

[butlerweave]

If you can find Hydrogen , Toyota has stopped making Hydrogen cars because there’s no infrastructure

[Fungi]

Three world tours and 25000 miles, all with my legs which still work great. To each his own.

[TexasGator]

“If you can find Hydrogen , Toyota has stopped making Hydrogen cars because there’s no infrastructure”

They have a dispenser that recharges empties. You exchange.

[Jonty30]

This unit allows you to make the hydrogen at home. You plug in the bottle, probably distilled water, and fill the bottle through their hydrogen separation machine.

[Jonty30]

I tow a 70lbs in a trailer. When I tried to use a manual bike, it took almost an hour to from work to home. Since I work 12hours/day, devoting 2 hours every day to travel is not feasible if you are almost making meals and housecleaning and all that.

[bigbob]

Even for strong cyclists, 14mph is a good average speed with traffic or hills.

[Dr. Sivana]

14mph is not a useful speed. I can almost walk that.

If you are going on foot at 14 mph, you pretty much have to be running. I seem to remember the speed limit for bicycles was 10 mph in many jurisdictions.

[Dr. Sivana]

Wait until one of those springs a leak in somebody's apartment!

The cannister seems to be too small to do much unless you use it to light your cigar.

[Dr. Sivana]

Cute except in twelve inches of snow, or pouring downpour, or taking out wife and kids, or grocery shopping.

Yes, but certainly not $50,000, and isn't aiming to replace the primary car, but to supplement, or for city folks.

[Jonty30]

I know I’m exaggerating abit, but 14mph is a useless speed for a bicycle if you are trying to get somewhere.

[Jonty30]

Go to the grocery store, if you just need a knapsack worth of groceries.

[dznutz]

Ooooh hurry, let’s phase out internal combustion transportation so we can become like China now.

[Jonty30]

I’d be against that, but I’m really into saving $200/month on fuel.

[Dr. Sivana]

I know I’m exaggerating a bit, but 14mph is a useless speed for a bicycle if you are trying to get somewhere.

I disagree. You will be able to race through an NYC, LA, or Atlanta rush hour in the city.

The following is from Perplexity.ai:
The average speed for a typical city bicyclist in the U.S. varies depending on several factors, but generally falls within the following ranges: Commuter Cyclists
10-12 mph (16-19 km/h) for beginner cyclists on short distances (10-15 miles)
15-16 mph (24-26 km/h) for more experienced cyclists on short to medium distances (20-30 miles)
City Riding Conditions
9.6 mph (15.4 km/h) in cities with heavy bike traffic like Copenhagen
11-12 mph (17.7-19.3 km/h) in cities with less bike traffic

[DoughtyOne]

Are you under the mistaken impression that all people get on their e-bike and
don’t pedal? There are various assist modes which allow you to pedal and
boost your performance.

I pedal about 90% of the time and I can report that I get a great workout. I’ve ridden well over thirty miles a day a number of times. Yeah, the motor
assists, but if I don’t pedal, the bike stops.

If I do need a rest, I can change modes, but I seldom do. It’s good for my
muscles, wind, and cost of fuel. I charge the bike up off solar.

I can travel up to 75 miles on a charge.

[fireman15]

My wife and I have been into tandem bicycles for many years. A long time ago I wrote an article in Tandem Magazine about the folding tandem we put behind the rear seats in our airplane which has come in very handy many times.

Recently, I purchased a folding electric bicycle and put a rear seat on the rear rack along with foot pegs for my wife to use. The bike has small wheels and a seat post that goes up over 18 inches and the stem adjusts way up as well, so I have got it to fit me quite well. The frame is aluminum, but very heavy. The bike has a 750-watt/100-watt peak geared motor in the rear hub which provides good torque and a top speed without pedaling of about 28mph on the flat. It came with a 48v 15ah lithium-ion battery. Hills and headwinds slow it down.

It has fairly impressive 40-mile range. You can use it in pedal assist mode which gives extra power you pedal the bike, or you can just use the motorcycle style throttle on the right handlebar grip. I had a problem with it a few days after it arrived but the seller used FedEx to end me a replacement motor controller that arrived two days later.

It cost $700 through Amazon including shipping and required a bit of assembly.

I also purchased a kit with motor, controller, brake levers, and the other accessories needed. It has a 1000-watt motor and a 48v 15ah battery. I put it on an old Costco mountain bike. The motor is not geared so it has a little less torque but because of the more powerful motor climbs hills very well and has about the same 40 mile range. The folding bike is heavier but easier to get in and out of our airplane.

You need to charge the bikes overnight with the included 3-amp chargers if you run the batteries down most of the way. They both have volt meters on the displays to keep track of how much charge you have left while you are out and about.

Both of us are in our mid 60s so we appreciate the extra speed and convenience that the electric motors provide. I think electric cars are mostly a waste of money, but electric bikes are relatively inexpensive and worthwhile for what we use them for. Unfortunately, those sold locally typically have a third to half the power of the two we now own, and much smaller batteries, and cost almost as much.

[fireman15]

[Jonty30]

I couldn’t live in a city where I couldn’t bike at least 20mph through the whole route. I’d feel as if I was standing still.

[fireman15]

I put together my first e-bike about 20 years ago with parts that I purchased through eBay and built it on a “hybrid” bike that I purchased from Walmart. At the time lithium-ion battery packs were extremely expensive so I used sealed lead-acid gel cells. They were very heavy. I used a front wheel 700 watt motor which got the bike up to about 30mph on the flat, but with all the weight from the battery pack and the ungeared motor, it needed quite a bit of help going up a steep hill.