JMU AFV Lab Blog

AutoBlogGreen has this interesting article about students in India creating an air powered motorcycle.  It appears that they took a small, probably 50cc two cycle motorbike, installed lightweight air tanks on it, and plumbed the air pressure to the engine.  The video below shows the result.  This same concept could be duplicated in our AFV Lab.  We have two smaller fiberglass SCUBA tanks available, as well as bigger, fiberglass CNG tanks that could be used, with some preparation, for such a project.  However, I don’t know about finding a two cycle moped; it would have to be an older model, I’m sure, as I don’t think two cycle motorbikes are currently sold in this country.

While the numbers of this project aren’t that impressive, it is a concept that could benefit from some development. For instance, since operating temperatures would be lower, maybe Teflon compression rings could be used instead of metal rings.  Historically, air motors haven’t been models of efficiency; their main purpose has been their ability to offer maintenance free rotational power in environments that needed such. Efficient use of energy was a secondary consideration.

Source: http://www.autobloggreen.com/2009/05/09/engineering-students-from-india-create-air-powered-motorcycle/

Engineering students from India create air-powered motorcycle

by Jeremy Korzeniewski on May 9th 2009 at 4:27PM

Just over a year ago, we reported on an air-powered moped that was built using carbon fiber tanks originally intended for firefighting use. Apparently, the idea has occurred to a few other people as well, as a group of engineering students from India have just completed another compressed air-powered motorcycle using a small 100 cc motorcycle as a starting point. Arshdeep Singh, one of the Air Bike’s designers, says:

“Our professors had asked us to create something which nobody has done so far and is also pollution free. Something which is economical and affordable to a common man. So we thought of inventing a bike, which runs on air. There is no combustion in this bike as it does not use any petrol, diesel or anything.”

At this point, the bike isn’t all that practical. Top speed is limited to just 18 kilometers per hour, but the team hopes to improve on the figure in future versions. Want to see and hear it run? Click past the break for a video.

[Source: Green Launches]

Source: http://www.autobloggreen.com/2009/05/09/engineering-students-from-india-create-air-powered-motorcycle/