renewable energy

By now, many of you have heard of the MIT professor which, with his team, developed a new technique to break apart hydrogen from water with earth abundant materials, at room temperature. The "oxygen and hydrogen [can then] be recombined inside a fuel cell, creating carbon-free electricity to power your house or your electric car, day or night." Daniel Nocera, the professor in question, says that the technique was "inspired by the photosynthesis performed by plants." The process is described below:

The key component in Nocera and Kanan's new process is a new catalyst that produces oxygen gas from water; another catalyst produces valuable hydrogen gas. The new catalyst consists of cobalt metal, phosphate and an electrode, placed in water. When electricity -- whether from a photovoltaic cell, a wind turbine or any other source -- runs through the electrode, the cobalt and phosphate form a thin film on the electrode, and oxygen gas is produced.

Combined with another catalyst, such as platinum, that can produce hydrogen gas from water, the system can duplicate the water splitting reaction that occurs during photosynthesis.

The new catalyst works at room temperature, in neutral pH water, and it's easy to set up, Nocera said. "That's why I know this is going to work. It's so easy to implement," he said.

Link.

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