Harnessing the power of waves isn’t the only way to generate energy from the ocean. As it turns out, a team of scientists at Stanford have figured out a way to make hydrogen fuel out of saltwater. The discovery could open up the world’s oceans as a potential source of energy.
Researchers view electrolysis, or the act of splitting water into hydrogen and gas, as a promising new source of renewable energy. But it comes with many roadblocks; a major one being that only purified water can be used in electrolysis. Seawater tends to corrode water-splitting systems.
Unfortunately, purified water is in itself a scarce resource. Which is why Stanford chemistry professor Hongjie Dai and her team searched for a way to keep salt water from breaking down devices used for water-splitting.
What they came up with is highly technical, but basically it uses a nickel coating to prevent the water-splitting device from corroding. The new discovery hasn’t been attempted outside of Stanford’s research labs, but scientist are hoping it will pave the way for increased use of hydrogen fuel, which doesn’t harm the planet.
