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New water-splitting catalyst found, for feeding H to fuel cells http://apocadocs.com/s.pl?1273853947
He has focused his research on the development of less-expensive, more-durable materials to use as the electrodes in devices that use electricity to separate the hydrogen and oxygen atoms in water molecules. By doing so, he aims to imitate the process of photosynthesis, by which plants harvest sunlight and convert the energy into chemical form.
Nocera pictures small-scale systems in which rooftop solar panels would provide electricity to a home, and any excess would go to an electrolyzer -- a device for splitting water molecules -- to produce hydrogen, which would be stored in tanks. When more energy was needed, the hydrogen would be fed to a fuel cell, where it would combine with oxygen from the air to form water, and generate electricity at the same time.... This time the material is nickel borate, made from materials that are even more abundant and inexpensive than the earlier find. Even more significantly, Nocera says, the new finding shows that the original compound was not a unique, anomalous material, and suggests that there may be a whole family of such compounds that researchers can study in search of one that has the best combination of characteristics to provide a widespread, long-term energy-storage technology.... The original discovery has already led to the creation of a company, called Sun Catalytix, that aims to commercialize the system in the next two years.
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'Doc Michael says:
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Are you kidding? I prefer good ol' coal-fired plants and high monthly bills. At least that's dependable.
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