Indian Students Build Motorcycle That Runs on Oxygen

Well, that does it. Our problems are solved. No more high fuel prices or oil wars in the middle east. No more pollution or oil spills. Thanks India.
Seriously though, that's pretty damn awesome.

They've always had air-powered engines... the concept attracts us but ultimately it requires some sort of energy/electricity to compress the air - that might need gas/coal.

Safety around pressurized tanks is another issue. I usually don't comment but i felt like i could contribute a little bit to clear up misguidances

Oxygen? Really? What is the purpose of using a strong oxidizing (by definition) gas, instead of compressed air?

I hope they meant air instead of oxygen thats 2 different things. cool idea but I'd gladly trade range for speed on this. 35mph even if it can only go 50-70 miles would be more useful

Waiiiit... is it "oxygen" or is it "air"...? 'cause there's a biiig effin' difference. Which is incredibly important in the case of a collision and/or fire.

"Air" is only 21% (roughly) oxygen. Pure compressed O2 is a significantly greater hazard.

Here's hoping it's a compressed air engine as well. I mean, seriously, are we now going to deplete our O2 reserves to combat the possible upcoming _shortage_ of oxygen? Someone, somewhere didn't do the math.

The fact that it used oxygen is pointless here - the engine runs on pressure. It'd be far more economic to run on compressed air.

That is a high pressure compressed gas cylinder. The pressure in it is usually around 3,000 psi and not 300 psi.

Where is the environmental benefit? Where will they get the energy to compress the gas? All they are doing is transferring the pollution from the city streets to a very inefficient power generating station our side town.

Granted IC engines, and esp. those in third world countries are extremely inefficient and horribly polluting but to beat one's chest and say that you have solved the pollution problem with compressed air is a waste of good engineering minds.

Zira, centralized energy production is much more efficient than distributed production in car engines. There is at least that benefit. It also isn't necessarily certain that the energy comes from fossil fuels. It's just a small step in the right direction.

Oh noes! There is no place they could get energy to compress the air without killing the world! Woe!

All I can think about is the horror of what would happen to that tank - and the rider - in a collision.

Okay.

So some guy scales up a pneumatic impact wrench and gets on Neatorama.

Hold on I have to go invent something terribly derivative in order to be famous.

Compressed gas engines have been around for a very long time. And a few people along the way have made cars and motorcycles with them.

It's air, not oxygen (air is 70% nitrogen so yo could more aptly call it a nitrogen engine.)

And you know what they call a 3000psi compressed air tank?
A rolling BOMB - and delivery vehicles in most countries are required to carry special warning flags....

Wrong. Nothing new here, 1800s technology. Cool project, but when they (or the media, more likely) pretend this is something new, they have to get corrected.

Won't his pants fall down now that he's using his belt to hold on the tank?
Hard to believe any of the facts... 3000psi (not 300) is 100 atmospheres, so the tank holds maybe 1000 liters. The engine is around 1/4 liter per revolution, so the bike can run about 4000 engine revolutions per tank. How does that get you 370 miles?

And it's inherently unsafe in a collision. Think of the children! Guys like Mr. Russell always think of the children, why can't we?

Let's set aside the "oxygen" error and the possible error of "300 PSI". They are just editorial mistakes.

Who wants a heavy motorcycle which only goes 6 to 12 MPH? I can ride my bike 2-3 times faster. An electric bike is much more practical if you don't want to pedal.

And I would not sit on a compressed air tank of 3000 or 300 or even 50 PSI considering how much damage could be done to the family jewels.