New, Hydrogen Fuel From Artificial Photosynthesis

Perhaps in the future, hydrogen fuel provides many options according to the needs of each device. A recent study from the Berkeley Lab scientist - Joint Center for Artificial Photosynthesis (JCAP), that nearly 90 percent of the electrons generated by hybrid materials are designed to store solar energy in hydrogen molecules through artificial photosynthesis.

Gary Moore, chemist and principal investigator of Berkeley Lab's Physical Biosciences Division who leads the study of the unique phototocathode material efficiency analysis, according to which this research has been developed to catalyze the production of hydrogen fuel from sunlight. The hybrid material formed from the semiconductor Gallium Phosphide with a Cobaloxime catalyst will produce a hydrogen fuel molecule. This material has the potential to overcome one of the major challenges in the use of artificial photosynthesis to produce renewable hydrogen fuel.

#Hydrogen Fuel From Artificial Photosynthesis

According to Moore, renewable energy problems are still constrained by storage problems. Given the intermittent availability of sunlight, where humans need a way to use solar energy throughout the day, especially the night. Saving solar energy in chemical bonds from fuel also provides great electricity for modern transportation systems.

The light absorption approach is illustrated by the production of hydrogen fuel in a single material to place the photoexited electrons, which will be stored in chemical bonds. Bionic leaves produce energy-dense fuels from sunlight, water and carbon dioxide heating without any byproducts other than oxygen. This material is an ongoing alternative energy to replace fossil fuels.

Artificial photosynthesis requires technological breakthroughs including high performance Photocathodes that can catalyze the production of hydrogen fuel from sunlight.

Since last year, scientists have been researching Photocathode with a Gallium Phosphide hybrid capable of absorbing light to produce Photocurrents higher than semiconductors that generally absorb only ultraviolet light. Cobaloxime material is also abundant on Earth, in other words that it is a much cheaper substitute for catalysts than precious metal catalysts, such as platinum often used in solar generators.

The Photocathode component as a light absorber is the main obstacle to obtaining a high electrical current density. Analysts say the number of solar photons on the surface of a hybrid semiconductor is measured across the entire spectrum of the solar wave range from 200 to 4000 nanometers, only 1.5 percent producing Photocurrent. This suggests, the use of light absorbers and enhanced spectral sun coverage is a good thing to achieve further performance gains.

Efficiency is not the only consideration for applying solar technology fuel technology, but component durability and scalability, targeting of reaction selectivities is also important. The molecular approach of hydrogen fuel offers great opportunities especially to analyze the complex chemical transformations, which also reduce the carbo dioxide.