Posted on 08/01/2008 7:52:39 PM PDT by neverdem
Washington, Aug 1 : Researchers at the MIT have found a new way to store solar power, a major breakthrough in the search to use the sun and serve the Earth's energy needs in a clean and sustainable way.
Every hour, the sun pours down enough radiation to serve the Earth's energy needs for a year. The trouble is to store that energy cheaply and use it whenever needed.
Daniel Nocera and Matthew Kanan of the Massachussets Institute of Technology (MIT) have developed a process that will use the sun's energy to split water into hydrogen and oxygen gases. Later, the oxygen and hydrogen are recombined inside a fuel cell, creating carbon-free electricity.
The theory was known, but the splitting had been enormously expensive and grossly inefficient till Nocera and Kanan showed the way.
The key component in their process is a new catalyst that produces oxygen from water; another catalyst produces hydrogen.
The new catalyst consists of the metal cobalt, phosphate and an electrode, placed in water. When electricity - whether from a solar photovoltaic cell, a wind turbine or any other source - runs through the electrode, the cobalt and phosphate form a thin film on the electrode, and oxygen gas is produced.
Combined with another catalyst, such as platinum, that can produce hydrogen gas from water, the system can duplicate the water splitting reaction that occurs during photosynthesis.
The new catalyst works at room temperature, in water that is neither acidic nor alkaline, and it's easy to set up, Nocera said. "That's why I know this is going to work. It's so easy to implement."
"This is the nirvana of what we've been talking about for years," said Nocera, professor of energy at MIT.
"Solar power has always been a limited, far-off solution. Now we can seriously think about solar power as unlimited and soon."
Earlier electrolysers that split water with electricity and are often used industrially are not suited for artificial photosynthesis because they are very expensive and require a highly alkaline environment.
James Barber, a leader in the study of photosynthesis who was not involved in this research, called the discovery by Nocera and Kanan a "giant leap" toward generating clean, carbon-free energy on a massive scale.
"This is a major discovery with enormous implications for the future prosperity of humankind," said Barber, the Ernst Chain professor at Imperial College, London.
"The importance of their discovery cannot be overstated since it opens up the door for developing new technologies for energy production thus reducing our dependence for fossil fuels and addressing the global climate change problem."
--- IANS
Catalysts work by reducing the energy of activation for any particular chemical reaction.
OMG! What a break through! Who would have ever imagined that you could break apart water into oxygen and hydrogen! The planet is saved!
I’m all for good news - assuming this turns out to be what they are making it out to be.
I don’t suspect liberals actually want there to be a viable alternative, however, as it would allow to still live where we want to live, travel where we want to travel, and do this when we want to do it.
I call BS!!! Peak electricity usage is at the hottest part of the day. Peak solar generation is at...you guessed it...the hottest part of the day.
When solar is meeting all of the peak demand from air conditioners running at the hottest part of the day, we can then worry about storing some of that power for later.
Wasn’t this an experiment in grade school general science, (back in the day), involving batteries and water? ;-)
Drill here! Drill now!
“...assuming this turns out to be what they are making it out to be.”
you noticed the last 4 words, too?
This is just the weekly “We’ve solved the problems with solar power” breakthrough announcement. Stay tune next week for the next solution that will save the world again...
MIT claims 24/7 solar power [more on new electrolysis claim] link to abstract
Catalyst heralded as solar-power breakthrough
Drugs turn 'couch potato' mice into long-distance runners
FReepmail me if you want on or off my health and science ping list.
"This development would put the streams, rivers, lakes and oceans at increased risk."
Above soon to be a quote from Al Gore.
Thanks for the ping.
We are saved from "dirty oil and dirty coal!"
Let's pray they don't sell the technology to the Saudis ...
Sort of. But that was a very inefficient reaction, and it used electricity, this one uses sunlight directly, just like plants do.
And plants are, for the most part, where fossil fuel comes from. Energy from fossil fuel is stored sunlight. Thus it's really nuclear energy.
But still, this is some time off, how long is hard to know, even if it's everything it's cracked up to be, we'll still need oil and other fossil fuels to feed the petrochemical industry.
How else will they make the stock for my next several firearms?
Not if it used the sunlight directly rather than having to turn it into electricity first. That's got to be way more efficient. It's also what the now decayed plants that comprise crude oil did.
Actually not quite. Sunlight peaks when the sun is highest in the sky. That would be noon if not for daylight savings time and "time zones". So call it one o'clock, plus or minus a half hour. Peak temperatures are reached about 4 or 5, while peak air conditioning load is a bit later yet.
Ever hear of thermal inertia? The same effect occurs seasonally. The longest day is about 20 June, but the hottest days aren't until late July or early august.
I could write the partial differential equations that explain it, after consulting a text book (it's been a LONG time), but I don't think that would help you much.
Well, that settles it then!
Not only don’t we need to drill for more oil, we can stop pumping oil from active wells!
We’re saved!!! Obama and the Dems were right!
I'm Ok with your "Actually not quite" part. My comment is mostly still applicable. More power is needed in the daylight hours. Solar power is generated in daylight hours. It is a natural fit...and STILL is not economic.
As for the whole Diff Eqns not helping me much...I took a LOT of graduate level Physics and Math for my Engineering Master's Degree...I'm not as dumb as I post...
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