May
5
DOE/Idaho National Laboratory’s researchers have developed a new electrode material for an electrochemical cell that can efficiently convert excess electricity and water into hydrogen. When demand for electricity increases, the electrochemical cell is reversible, converting hydrogen back into electricity for the grid. The hydrogen could also be used as fuel for heat, vehicles or other […]
Mar
24
A New Material Design for Artificial Photosynthesis
March 24, 2020 | Leave a Comment
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory scientists have a new material design that puts the long-sought idea of using artificial photosynthesis to generate renewable fuel within reach. Scientist Heinz Frei has spent decades working toward building an artificial version of one of nature’s most elegant and effective machines: the leaf. Frei, and many other researchers around the […]
Oct
31
Atomic Force Microscope Design Helps Make Solar Fuels
October 31, 2019 | 1 Comment
Open Image…Save ImageOpen Image (using #TmpD/ia)… University of Oregon researchers used an atomic-force microscope fitted with an electrode tip 1,000 times smaller than a human hair to identify in real time how nanoscale catalysts collect charges that are excited by light in semiconductors. It’s a discovery that could help efforts to design devices that can store solar power for later […]
May
29
A Big Step Forward Producing Hydrogen
May 29, 2019 | Leave a Comment
Newcastle University researchers have engineered a chemical reactor capable of producing hydrogen as a pure product stream. The reactor represents a ‘transformational’ step forward in the chemical industry. It is the first thermodynamically reversible chemical reactor capable of producing hydrogen. The novel reactor, described in the academic journal Nature Chemistry, avoids mixing reactant gases by […]
May
14
Doubling Hydrogen Production Using Sunlight
May 14, 2019 | Leave a Comment
Princeton University engineer’s research has harnessed sunlight to isolate hydrogen from industrial wastewater, doubling the previous standard for splitting hydrogen from water in a scalable way. Hydrogen is a critical component in the manufacture of thousands of common products from plastic to fertilizers, but producing pure hydrogen is expensive and energy intensive. In a paper […]