Where has the hydrogen bike gone? Is hydrogen powered bicycles a gimmick?, Over a week of vehicle deployment | Longhu Daxingtian Street | Hydrogen Energy

Yihezhuang Subway Exit

On July 11th, Beijing, China National Radio and Television reported that Yong'an Bank has recently launched 500 hydrogen sharing bicycles at Beijing Daxing Yihezhuang Subway Station, Longhu Daxing Tianjie, and Daxing International Hydrogen Demonstration Zone, with plans to increase the number to 2000 by the end of this month. But some citizens have reported that these hydrogen powered bicycles cannot be found in the past two days. Yesterday, the reporter visited the previous placement area and only saw less than 20 hydrogen sharing bicycles near the Daxing International Hydrogen Energy Demonstration Zone. Where have these bicycles gone after more than a week of deployment? Is hydrogen powered bicycles a gimmick?

Yesterday noon, the reporter first went to the Yihezhuang subway station located in Daxing, Beijing, and did not see hydrogen sharing bicycles at all four subway exits. According to the Yong'anxing App, there are only two vehicles within a one kilometer radius. The reporter immediately walked to the location, but did not see any vehicles.

A nearby citizen who works said she even rode with her colleagues at the beginning of the month, "I downloaded the app specifically before and rode it once. It feels lighter to ride. These days, I still want to ride on the subway, but I can't find it."

Hydrogen bike display interface

Subsequently, the reporter went to the vicinity of Daxing Tianjie in Longhu, but also did not see hydrogen powered shared bicycles. The map showed that the available vehicles were not found after the reporter arrived. The owner of a nearby store said that he hasn't seen a blue hydrogen powered shared bike for several days. "I had it at my doorstep before, but I haven't seen it for a few days. I thought it might have been ridden away. There aren't many, only about ten," he said

Display location without vehicles

Display location without vehicles

The reporter called the customer service hotline of Yong'an Bank, who said that the hydrogen sharing bike in Beijing is still being debugged. "Previously, it was put into use, but the vehicle is still in the trial operation testing stage. It may be that the car is being put over there for testing. If there is no car, it may be temporarily taken away. If you haven't seen it, it may not be usable temporarily."

In the end, the reporter saw more than ten hydrogen powered shared bicycles at the entrance of the Daxing International Hydrogen Energy Demonstration Zone. Some of the bicycles scanned the QR code and prompted "Currently, the vehicles do not support scanning and renting." There were also vehicles that can be successfully scanned and used, but can only be ridden within a designated small blue area. A staff member working at the Daxing Hydrogen International Demonstration Zone said, "I was able to ride it before, and it seems like I can ride it three times for free. Many colleagues think it's new and even came to give it a try."

Vehicles at the entrance of the hydrogen demonstration zone

The reporter learned that the hydrogen sharing bike launched in Beijing this time weighs about 32 kilograms, has a total range of about 50-60 kilometers, and a top speed of 23 kilometers per hour. During operation, the vehicle converts hydrogen fuel into electricity to provide power for the entire vehicle. Last night, Sun Jisheng, Chairman of Yong'anxing Technology Co., Ltd., stated in an interview that the company had originally planned to invest 500 hydrogen sharing bicycles in the Daxing area of Beijing in the early stage, and is expected to invest 2000 by the end of the month. The reason why the vehicles cannot be found now is because they need to go through a registration process.

Sun Jisheng said, "After the first batch of 500 vehicles were invested, the department in charge of shared bicycles here requested us to complete a filing procedure. We are currently processing it, and the vehicles will be reduced to the hydrogen demonstration zone and the last subway entrance for pilot operation in this area. The current situation is like this, and we are actively applying for filing procedures and following the requirements of regulatory authorities."

Sun Jisheng introduced that citizens can rent vehicles through the Yong'anxing App without charging a deposit. "The current shared bicycles are priced at 1.5 yuan per 15 minutes, while we charge 2.5 yuan per 15 minutes. Now, we are piloting the project and providing three free rides for cyclists. I also reiterate that Yong'anxing does not charge a deposit."

Hydrogen powered bicycles can be considered a novelty, and many people still have many concerns about the use of hydrogen energy. For example, some people believe that the cost of use will be high, while most people are more concerned about the safety of hydrogen energy. Regarding this, Teng Xiang, an analyst in the hydrogen energy industry at Longzhong Information, believes that the high cost of using hydrogen powered bicycles is inevitable at the current stage.

Teng Xiang said, "Whether it's fuel cell vehicles or fuel cell two wheeled bicycles, the entire industry has not yet been fully commercialized and is currently in an early stage of exploration. Many projects are pilot and demonstration projects, so its pilot and demonstration significance is greater."

In the view of Zhang Xiang, Dean of the New Energy Vehicle Technology Research Institute at Jiangxi New Energy Technology Vocational College, there is still uncertainty about when hydrogen powered bicycles can be widely deployed.

Zhang Xiang said, "Our country needs to vigorously develop clean energy, including wind power, solar energy, and hydropower. Clean energy needs to be stored on a carrier, and hydrogen energy is an ideal carrier. The biggest problem now is the economy, because it does not have economies of scale. Regardless of the product, if it does not have a large volume, its cost is high, and there are high research and development expenses in the early stage, including management and production costs. The cost shared by each bicycle is high, and it cannot make a profit. This is the biggest problem. Therefore, from the current stage, this is only an innovative product."

Is using hydrogen safe? Can we scan the QR code and ride bikes with confidence? Sun Jisheng stated that hydrogen powered bicycles use low-pressure solid-state hydrogen storage technology, with very low pressure.

Sun Jisheng said, "Whether it's a hydrogen fuel cell or a small hydrogen storage rod, what we have developed is a new type of low-pressure solid-state hydrogen storage technology. The pressure at room temperature is only one megapascal, and when it needs to be released, it can be slowly released, so it is very safe to use."

If safety cannot be guaranteed, hydrogen gas may escape, and if hydrogen gas explodes, it can also be very dangerous. Teng Xiang believes that in terms of hydrogen storage methods, solid-state hydrogen storage is safer than pure gaseous hydrogen storage bottles.

Teng Xiang said, "The hydrogen storage container inside the heavy-duty truck of a fuel cell is still the hydrogen storage cylinder in the vehicle, which means that hydrogen is directly injected into the hydrogen storage cylinder in a gaseous form inside. The hydrogen storage medium inside the solid-state hydrogen storage is different, and hydrogen is stored in the bicycle hydrogen storage cylinder in a solid state. No matter what fuel it is, it will have a safety issue. As long as it is adjusted from a policy perspective and the structure of the entire industry chain, and the safety of hydrogen is fully controlled, the safety issue is not a big problem."

Zhang Xiang stated that currently, the production and storage process of hydrogen energy is safe. However, there are no relevant national standards for hydrogen bicycles that need to be further improved. "Both lead-acid battery bicycles and lithium-ion battery bicycles have industry and national standards. Currently, there are no product standards or operational standards for hydrogen bicycles, and only a few units are in the discussion stage of a seminar."