Suzuki and Intelligent Energy commit to hydrogen motorcycle

[Mon]

Suzuki and Intelligent Energy commit to hydrogen motorcycle

http://www.gizmag.com/suzuki-and-intelligent-energy-commit-to-hydrogen-motorcycle/9058/

March 27, 2008 Motorcyclists will no doubt remember the highly
unconventional Suzuki Crosscage Hydrogen Concept bike from last
November's Tokyo Motor Show. The bike was developed in conjunction
with British Intelligent Energy (the same folk who developed the ENV
fuel cell motorcycle in 2005). Suzuki and IE this week executed a
further development agreement which envisages the progression of their
collaboration to commercially viable fuel cell motorcycles - it means
that the Crosscage, or something quite like it, will appear in a
showroom near you. Even more interesting though, is that IE's home
hydrogen generation plants appear the perfect partner for a fuel cell
motorcycle - brew your own hydrogen.

From a distance, the Suzuki Crosscage looks like a distinctly radical
motorcycle, but it's only when you get close up that the
unconventional nature becomes fully visible. Very little is at it
seems - the motor is actually inside that huge swingingarm/rear wheel
assembly, the faux petrol tank covers the fuel cell, the hydrogen fuel
tank is where the motor is normally located and the battery and motor
controller sit underneath the lot.

The suspension is single-sided front and rear with the rear wheel
bolting to the aforementioned humongous scooter-like motor and
swinging arm assembly - it's hard to reconcile such a huge lump of
unsprung weight. Compared to the ENV, which mounted its motor at the
swinging arm pivot, (keeping mass centralized), and a belt drive to
the rear wheel, the Crosscage puts it all at the end of the swinging
arm, and it looks a bit unweildly.

As we pointed out in our brief report on the vehicle from Tokyo, 100
is the largest number to appear on the machine's speedo, and there
looks to be enough room for the needle to run to around 120km/h, so
let's not suggest that the bike is going to have performance to match
its looks. It will however, emit nothing noxious, and will need to
deliver running costs at levels cheap enough to give the population
reason enough to buy them - with mains electricity supplying
electricity at current levels, it's hard to see another infrastructure
being viable because there's not enough profit to support the
development of that infrastructure.

Suzuki officials quoted the performance of the machine in Tokyo as
"similar to a 125cc motorcycle", and while that's more than enough to
blow away the majority of SadC***Mobiles, it's hardly likely to have
the punters queued up around the block.

The ENV was powered by a 6kW 48 volt motor and with energy supplied
from Intelligent Energy's 1kW hydrogen fuel cell, was capable of 50mph
(80kmh) and by the time it reached market, was forecast to be able to
reach most speed limits and exceed its then range of 100 miles (160
kilometers). The Crosscage, for all its devilish good looks, cannot be
expected to perform any better than speed limits, and having no extra
performance up your sleeve

The winning factor in the Suzuki-IE collaboration is the
infrastructure the British company brings to the table. Intelligent
Energy has a portfolio that includes a range of world-class fuel cell,
fuel processing, desulphurization and hydrogen generation
technologies. The company's existing home hydrogen generation system
means you'll be able to make your own hydrogen at home.

That begs the question as to whether the world will seriously embrace
fuel cell technology for cars and motorcycles - either pay premium
rates at the newly established service-station infrastructure or make
your own at home. Will the additional cost and additional effort for
hydrogen generation be worthwhile?

Intelligent Energy recently announced a deal with Scottish & Southern
Energy to provide fuel cell combined heat and power systems for
residential and commercial markets in the UK and Ireland., adding
further credibility to the company's ability to deliver robust fuel
cell powered systems for a range of applications across many sectors.

Intelligent Energy's proprietary Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel
cell designs are based on the use of thin metallic plates, which make
the fuel cell stack compact and amenable to mass manufacture. Fuel
cells generate power from hydrogen, producing water as the only by-
product. In addition to its range of fuel cells, Intelligent Energy is
actively engaged in furthering its hydrogen generation technology.

For now, the Crosscage proposition isn't all that compelling, but
facts are few and the information available has been purposefully
vague. We suspect that the performance will need to increase to at
least 250cc levels or greater to be considered worthwhile -
particularly given that electric motorcycles are already at that
level, and they plug straight into the wall socket.

Stay tuned though, because IE's technologies might well find their way
into your home from another direction, and a mini home hydrogen-based
power, heating, and vehicle refueling ecosystem might

[Luis Taylor]