Motorcycles are the most popular vehicles for motorised individual transport in Asia. Millions of motorcycles cause the majority of traffic-based air pollution.
A prototype of a clean, silent and fuel efficient hydrogen fuel cell powered Motorcycle demonstrates an alternative. An important part of the solution is a study comparing different designs for integrating fuel cell systems in drive trains.
This study compares different fuel cell drive train designs and their control strategies. The study compares designs of varying complexity, from direct Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cell drive trains to multiple hybridized fuel cell drive train systems with ultra capacitors and batteries. These designs are examined by initial laboratory and real world experiments. Results compare overall efficiency from tank-to-wheel and system performance and reveal a fuel cell drive train architecture that increases the potential reliability and lifetime of components. The optimised
drive train will be implemented in a fuel cell motorcycle.
This work contains important lessons for designers of fuel cell motorcycles and vehicles, and for any engineer implementing fuel cell systems in an environment of rapidly fluctuating electrical load.