Scientists replicate plants' process to split hydrogen from water

That'd be cool if they can scale it up.

 

This is a neat process, and one that is not snake oil. The key thing to remember with this type of process is that it reduces the energy loss incurred when splitting hydrogen and oxygen, but does not liberate energy. To say this another way, this new process is a net energy consumer.

Hydrogen used in this manner is like an electrical storage battery. It stores energy for reuse at a later time, but does so at some cost. Lowering the conversion cost makes the use of hydrogen more attractive.

Perhaps the main application of this process will be to store energy at electrical production facilities. Large scale storage allows electric utilities to balance cyclical loads. Many now use pump storage of water to do this, but this new hydrogen process may prove to be more efficient.

Tom

 

Can I put this in a mason jar and feed hydrogen into my intake manifold? :madgrin:

 

Only if you put the jar on the roof of your car.

 

How about if I install a solar tube in the hood of my car? Would that work? :madgrin:

 

Only if you don't put it where the sun dont shine.

 

So to troll a bit here.... is it safe to say that perhaps GWB's vision of hydrogen may come true (referring to his state of the union speach)?

 

I don't think it is proper to use "GWB" and "vision" in the same sentence unless you are documenting the result of his optometrist exam.

 

LOL!!! I knew the choice of words would be commented on. Hey, at least I abbreviated "GWB" when I did it. I didn't want to cause loss of "vision" when you saw the entire name written out in the same sentence.

 

Well, FCVs still have significant hurdles to clear. This process is merely a way to create hydrogen. That doesn't make FCVs viable, it just makes the creation of hydrogen from renewable sources more viable. That's a good thing, but doesn't translate into a paradigm (pronounced para-dig-um) shift for the transportation sector. It could prove to be a great way to create dispatchable power from wind and solar and so it's very good news. It might be a necessary piece of the puzzle to realize phase one of Pickens' plan. Sod phase 2.