A revolutionary method can help turn water into fuel

Researchers have developed a new material that breaks water into hydrogen and oxygen and produces clean fuel. The method could eventually feed our homes and a wide range of energy technologies.

Researchers have long been interested in the possibility of using hydrogen as a fuel. The best way to proceed is to split the water into its constituents, hydrogen and oxygen. However, this process relies on catalysts to achieve the desired reactions.

Catalysts are often unstable and expensive. Therefore, they can not be used commercially. Only a cheap, stable and efficient catalyst can produce hydrogen fuels on a commercial scale.

"Much of the previous work was done with electrolyzers made from two elements – a metal and oxygen," said Hong Yang, co-author of the University of Hawaii. Illinois. and ruthenium – and oxygen, the rate of water splitting reaction increased. "

Researchers have experimented with many things to make this new material. They used different acids and heating temperatures to increase the rate of chemical reaction. When they added a substance called perchloric acid as a catalyst and let the mixture react under the effect of heat, they observed dramatic changes in the nature of yttrium ruthenate.

"The material is becoming more porous and also has a new crystalline structure, different from any solid catalysts we've made before," said lead author Jaemin Kim.

The new porous material can break down water molecules faster than any standard method. Under the microscope, it appeared four times more porous than their original yttrium ruthenate and three times more than other base metal compounds, iridium oxide or ruthenium oxide.

"It was surprising to find that the acid we chose as a catalyst for this reaction was found to improve the structure of the material used for the electrodes," Yang said. "The realization was fortuitous and very precious for us."

The new catalyst appears to have all the good properties to drive the desired reaction. However, researchers will conduct other experiments to overcome the limitations of current methods and to improve the stability of porous materials in acidic environments.

"The stability of the electrodes in the acid will always be a problem, but we think we have found something new and different compared to other work in this area," Yang said. "This type of research will have a huge impact on generating hydrogen for sustainable energy in the future."