Solar panels typically convert sunlight into electricity or heat. But photosynthetic vegetation converts sunlight into chemical energy. Now M.I.T.’s Daniel Nocera wants to bring photosynthesis to your home. Solar power only works, obviously, when the sun shines. Nocera’s idea is to take solar power and use it to for electrolysis—to break apart water into hydrogen and oxygen—which then could be recombined when needed in a fuel cell. The problem is that current electrolyzer technology takes a lot of energy in a harsh, alkaline environment. That’s because, surprisingly enough, it’s hard to get the oxygen out of the water, not the hydrogen.
Nocera為氧氣分離步驟設(shè)計(jì)了新的催化劑，反應(yīng)在常溫常壓下的一杯水中就能進(jìn)行。當(dāng)電流通過電極時(shí)，水中的磷酸鹽和鈷會在電極上形成一層薄膜，氧氣泡泡就開始往外冒了。這項(xiàng)研究發(fā)表于7月31日發(fā)行的《科學(xué)》雜志上。這個(gè)系統(tǒng)還可以與另一個(gè)電極耦合產(chǎn)生氫氣。Nocera相信在幾年之內(nèi)，電解裝置會變得更高效更低廉。
Nocera designed a new catalyst for that oxygen step that works at room temperature and pressure, in a glass of water. When a current runs through an electrode, phosphate and cobalt in the water form a thin film on that electrode. And O2 bubbles right up. The work appears in the July 31st issue of the journal Science. This system could be paired with another electrode for the hydrogen side. Nocera believes that electrolyzers could be cheap and efficient within a few years.
本文由Crux譯自60-Second Science，英語作者Cynthia Graber
轉(zhuǎn)載星座下的神跡（http://www.cruxblog.org
