At the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), students are busy, to say the least. Their hydrogen motorcycle prototype is already functional!
“ Already », because their project started in January 2023. In one year, a team of students and researchers from MIT succeeded in developing a prototype of an electric motorcycle powered by a hydrogen fuel cell. If Kawasaki is already working on the development of a motorcycle model powered in the same way, the Ninja H2 H2, this MIT prototype is open-source. Its plans will soon be made available free of charge on the web by the institute.
Recycling and high-tech
The students did not start entirely from scratch to finalize their project. In fact, they used a fairly old motorcycle frame (1999) as a structure to install the propulsion system. The fuel cell that powers the assembly is supplied by the South Korean company Doosan. Other pieces were donated by project sponsors or simply purchased. After months of work that we certainly imagine to be diligent, the track tests carried out in October 2023 proved conclusive.
Aditya Mehrotra, student coordinator of the project, emphasizes: “ We are the first fully open source fuel cell motorcycle, rigorously documented, tested and released. No one else has made a motorcycle and documented their project to the point where someone could actually pick it up and start building it, or using it in research “. A completely honorable vision!
A potential that still remains to be developed
The project is therefore a success, but Aditya Mehrotra keeps his feet on the ground, and very readily recognizes its limits, particularly in terms of cost: “ For the moment, this vehicle is affordable for research, but it is not yet affordable for commercial production, because the fuel cell is a very expensive component “. Very clearly, a motorcycle of this type intended for the general public is not yet for tomorrow. We must consider this MIT project as an iteration, from which certain manufacturers or researchers will be able to draw inspiration due to its accessibility thanks to open-source.
Creating a functional prototype in less than a year as part of a student project is already a great feat. Hopefully, the initiative will serve as a catalyst for the advancement of hydrogen vehicle technology.
Sources: H2 Mobile, Youtube
4