A protein found in the membranes of ancient microorganisms
that live in desert salt flats could offer a new way of using sunlight to
generate environmentally friendly hydrogen fuel, according to a new study by
researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory.
Argonne nanoscientist Elena Rozhkova and her colleagues
combined a pigment called bacteriorhodopsin with semiconducting nanoparticles
to create a system that uses light to spark a catalytic process that creates
hydrogen fuel.