Aqwon, the First Hydrogen Scooter

An anonymous reader writes "After 10 years of research and development, Josef Zeitler has developed the first hydrogen-filled two stroke engine scooter with technical approval from the German TÜV. In case of an accident, the tank will freeze and no fire or explosion would occur. Anyone can fill-up the tank on the scooter within 3 to 4 minutes, without being in any danger. The pressure sensor will transmit the data to a computer chip, which will then accumulate and send the necessary information, regarding the proper hydrogen mixture, to the injection jet. This process of refilling is possible with a newly developed system consisting of pressure tanks and a hydrogen generator. AQWON's top speed is about 50 km/h (31 mph), the power is 2.6 kWh and the weight is minimal. This is the same as a petrol/oil two stroke scooter. There is no extra maintenance service required."

Comments

Cool

[Anonymous Coward]

I wonder what materials the engine is made of? Hydrogen embrittles metals so a current ICE would fail much more quickly if running on H2.

The home fueling station is nice. Throw in a solar panel or two and now we're talking.

But alas it's a scooter and scooters in America are like dating fat chicks: you'd like to ride it but you don't want your friends to know.

Hydrogen combustion is actually polluting

[orzetto]

I don't think pollution is a problem for hydrogen engines -- they don't burn hydrocarbons.

Actually it is. Hydrogen combustion does not generate CO2, but it has inherent problems with high-temperature combustion. This means, there is going to be high air excess to lower the actual temperature in order to avoid needing a tungsten engine which would be a bit expensive.

This high air excess will in turn cause a massive production of NOx, a highly pollutant compound (actually they are two, NO and NO2) that is caused by the high-temperature combustion. It is quite reactive and is one of the most toxic stuffs a petrol car spits out.

This is a known problem with H2 combustion engines. If you want a zero-emission engine, you have to use H2 with fuel cells, not in piston engines.