Australian engineers have built a hydrogen-powered bicycle that can take riders up to 125 kilometres on a single battery charge and $2 in fuel.

The Hy-Cycle, created by a University of New South Wales team covering multiple disciplines, is powered by a hydrogen fuel cell.

The fuel cell provides electrical assistance with pedalling, enabling the rider to easily travel long distances or up hills.

The innovative design makes the Hy-Cycle a low-cost, sustainable transport option.

The Hy-Cycle’s is the latest demonstration of hydrogen as a clean and safe energy source.

“What we've been trying to develop in my lab is a new way to store hydrogen in a very compact fashion,” UNSW researcher Kondo-Francois Aguey-Zinsou says.

“Hydrogen storage can be a problem because it's a light gas, but with the material and the technology we've developed you can actually make it safe to store and use.”

Hydrogen for the Hy-Cycle is carried in a 2.5-kilogram canister that sits adjacent to the pedals. The canister feeds the fuel cell, which is located under the seat and continuously recharges a Lithium-ion battery.

The advanced metal structures inside the canister enable safe, user-friendly storage of hydrogen fuel.

Hydrogen for the Hy-Cycle can be produced with as little as 100 millilitres of water. The water is split into its elements – oxygen and hydrogen – and the fuel cell recombines the hydrogen with oxygen to produce electricity.

The researchers envision a future where riders can buy replacement canisters from a network of distribution points.

“We should not be waiting to harness hydrogen fuel cell technology when it is ready now,” Aguey-Zinsou says.

“I think Australia has been missing a lot of great opportunities through its focus on solar, when the reality is we have a lot of other renewable capabilities that we can take and make happen.

“Hydrogen fuel cell technology is very exciting because it means we could have unlimited and clean energy supplies for our children.”

Technical specifications for the Hy-Cycle:

  • Range: 125km at 20km/hour.
  • Maximum speed: 35km/hour.
  • Battery: 518 Wh Lithium-ion battery that is continuously recharged by the fuel cell and hydrogen canister. The battery itself can be recharged in six hours on mains power.
  • Fuel cell power: 100W
  • Canister: 738 Wh capacity. It can be exchanged for a new canister in 30 seconds.

The Hy-Cycle is demonstrated in the following video;