Hold the Phone: Research Shows Algae Much More Efficient at Producing Hydrogen than Ethanol

[Nathanael]

Hydrogen seems to be left out of most alternative fuel conversations. Perhaps research like this will lead to more development of hydrogen as a fuel source.


Alternative fuel researchers just cannot get enough of algae. Scientists at the University of Tennessee, however, are testing and studying algae not in order to develop it as a biofuel, but rather to harness its capacity to produce hydrogen.

Hydrogen is an alternative fuel that has not really taken off. This is largely due to the expensive and energy intensive production process. However, Dr. Barry Bruce and his research team may have found a safe, stable, and less inexpensive way to produce hydrogen.

By separating a tiny particle produced by algae during photosynthesis, and combining it with a platinum catalyst and sunlight, the research team has been able to produce hydrogen. Other scientists have used photosynthetic microorganisms as a hydrogen fuel source, however, many have found it difficult to to efficiently use the organisms at the high temperatures required to harness sunlight. Bruce's team, on the other hand, has discovered a strand of algae that is capable of sustaining reaction temperatures as high as 131 degrees Fahrenheit.

Link: http://www.energyboom.com/biofuels/hold-phone-research-shows-algae-even-more-efficient-producing-hydrogen-ethanol

[aquart]

1. And after it's produced, does it explode?

[TheWraith]

2. Most chemical fuels will explode if provided an oxidizer and ignition source.

Gasoline does, hydrogen can (within the limits of having oxygen, access to which is more limited in a hydrogen based system).

[Nathanael]

3. So No Hydrogen For You?

You think developing hydrogen as a fuel is too risky? You prefer other solutions?