mblakele
FSD Beta (99)
Might as well post this:
https://cleantechnica.com/2019/11/12/new-catalyst-can-produce-hydrogen-from-seawater/amp/
The dream of hydrogen power refuses to die. The allure is a source of energy with no emissions other than water vapor and a little heat. That’s an exciting prospect at a time when carbon emissions threaten the very existence of the human race. But there are some problems. Most hydrogen today is made from natural gas and most of that comes from fracking, a process that injects millions of gallons of highly polluted water deep underground to release the trapped gas. Huge quantities of it escape into the atmosphere as methane, a greenhouse gas many times more powerful than carbon dioxide. So while the end product of hydrogen as a fuel is promising, getting the hydrogen is a deal with the devil that has total emissions greater than those from burning coal.
[...]
Pure fresh water is a scarce commodity in the world today and getting more scarce all the time. Using what little is available to make hydrogen may not be the best use for it. But researchers at the University of Houston say they have developed a new catalyst composed of inexpensive non-noble metal nitrides that makes it possible to split seawater at low voltages. Their work is described in Nature Communications.
[...]
First author Luo Yu, a postdoctoral researcher at UH who is also affiliated with Central China Normal University, says cell voltages required to produce a current density of 100 milliamperes per square centimeter ranged from 1.564 V to 1.581 V. The voltage is significant, Yu adds, because while a voltage of at least 1.23 V is required to produce hydrogen, chlorine is produced at a voltage of 1.73 V, meaning the device had to be able to produce meaningful levels of current density with a voltage between the two levels.
And so the search for a hydrogen economy continues. Pure water is much too valuable to use to make hydrogen, but if a way can be found to use seawater or wastewater, the possibilities for hydrogen from non-polluting sources are much greater than previously thought possible.
There is a secondary benefit from this research. In addition to making hydrogen, it could also be used to purify seawater into fresh water for drinking or irrigation. As sources of fresh water become more scarce, that other purpose could turn out to be more important to people than hydrogen.
https://cleantechnica.com/2019/11/12/new-catalyst-can-produce-hydrogen-from-seawater/amp/
The dream of hydrogen power refuses to die. The allure is a source of energy with no emissions other than water vapor and a little heat. That’s an exciting prospect at a time when carbon emissions threaten the very existence of the human race. But there are some problems. Most hydrogen today is made from natural gas and most of that comes from fracking, a process that injects millions of gallons of highly polluted water deep underground to release the trapped gas. Huge quantities of it escape into the atmosphere as methane, a greenhouse gas many times more powerful than carbon dioxide. So while the end product of hydrogen as a fuel is promising, getting the hydrogen is a deal with the devil that has total emissions greater than those from burning coal.
[...]
Pure fresh water is a scarce commodity in the world today and getting more scarce all the time. Using what little is available to make hydrogen may not be the best use for it. But researchers at the University of Houston say they have developed a new catalyst composed of inexpensive non-noble metal nitrides that makes it possible to split seawater at low voltages. Their work is described in Nature Communications.
[...]
First author Luo Yu, a postdoctoral researcher at UH who is also affiliated with Central China Normal University, says cell voltages required to produce a current density of 100 milliamperes per square centimeter ranged from 1.564 V to 1.581 V. The voltage is significant, Yu adds, because while a voltage of at least 1.23 V is required to produce hydrogen, chlorine is produced at a voltage of 1.73 V, meaning the device had to be able to produce meaningful levels of current density with a voltage between the two levels.
And so the search for a hydrogen economy continues. Pure water is much too valuable to use to make hydrogen, but if a way can be found to use seawater or wastewater, the possibilities for hydrogen from non-polluting sources are much greater than previously thought possible.
There is a secondary benefit from this research. In addition to making hydrogen, it could also be used to purify seawater into fresh water for drinking or irrigation. As sources of fresh water become more scarce, that other purpose could turn out to be more important to people than hydrogen.
