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Hydrogen from plants - the basis of future energy

16.04.2013

Scientists have discovered a way to extract large amounts of hydrogen from any plant. It is possible that this is the very long-awaited breakthrough in the energy sector, which will make it possible to switch to the use of inexpensive environmentally friendly fuel.

The new hydrogen production process is based on the energy conversion of xylose, the most common simple sugar. At the same time, the technology makes it possible to produce a large amount of hydrogen from any biomass sources without greenhouse gas emissions and the use of expensive metals. Xylose makes up as much as 30% of plant cell walls. However, despite the high proportion of xylose in plants, so far it has been difficult to produce hydrogen using this sugar. Various chemical and physical influences, as well as genetically modified microorganisms, could not produce enough hydrogen.

Scientists at Virginia Tech took a set of enzymes from a number of microorganisms and created a unique synthetic enzyme that does not exist in nature. This enzyme at a temperature of only 50 degrees Celsius releases with the help of xylose an unprecedented amount of hydrogen - about 3 times more than the best modern "microbial" methods.

The essence of the process is that the energy stored in xylose and polyphosphates breaks down water molecules and makes it possible to obtain high-purity hydrogen, which can be immediately sent to fuel cells that generate electricity. It turns out the most efficient environmentally friendly process that requires little energy just to start the reaction. According to specialists' calculations, the new technology can become widespread in 3 years due to its simplicity and exceptional advantages over other methods of hydrogen production. True, the question of the price of enzyme production still remains open, but the developers are full of optimism about this.

Theoretically, the new technology can be used everywhere: from autonomous power generators at agricultural enterprises to large power plants processing hundreds of tons of vegetable raw materials. The resulting hydrogen can either be immediately converted into electricity, or used as fuel for road, sea, rail and air transport.

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Production of hydrogen fuel from air 12.09.2022

Hydrogen has huge potential as a clean fuel: it is plentiful (mainly in compounds like water), produces no harmful emissions, and can be used to store energy from solar, wind and tidal sources.

However, there are problems with producing enough material in a practical and affordable way. Separating hydrogen from water can require complex technology, as well as clean fresh water, which is not available everywhere in abundance.

An international team of scientists has developed a new prototype device that can harvest water from moist air before splitting it into hydrogen and oxygen. What's more, it can work in places where humidity - the concentration of water vapor in the air - is as low as 4%.

The device assembled by the researchers is a prototype electrolyser powered by electricity from renewable energy sources to decompose water into its elements, hydrogen and oxygen. In one test, five electrolyzers were run in parallel with a solar power source. The electrodes sit on either side of a water collection device, a sponge-like material that absorbs water from the air but also serves as a reservoir for the electrolyte. Both electrodes are insulated from air, which means that hydrogen and oxygen can be collected as pure gases after separation has taken place.

A number of different materials and settings were tested to get the prototype device to perform at a satisfactory level, and one of the configurations the researchers tried was able to work successfully for 12 consecutive days.

"This so-called direct air electrolysis (DAE) module can operate in a completely dry environment with a relative humidity of 4%, overcoming water supply problems and producing green hydrogen sustainably with minimal environmental impact," they said.

The technology is still in its early stages, scientists say, because different DAE setups and materials have led to different results in terms of efficiency and power generation. However, the team is confident that their device can be improved and scaled.

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