A discovery at the University of Wisconsin-Madison may
represent a significant advance in the quest to create a "hydrogen
economy" that would use this abundant element to store and transfer
energy.
Theoretically, hydrogen is the ultimate non-carbon, non-polluting
fuel for storing intermittent energy from the wind or sun. When burned for
energy, hydrogen produces water but no carbon dioxide. Practically speaking,
producing hydrogen from water, and then storing and using the gas, have proven
difficult.
The new study, now published online at the Journal of the
American Chemical Society, introduces a new catalyst structure that can
facilitate the use of electricity to produce hydrogen gas from water.