New Research Creates Hydrogen Fuel From Seawater: Stanford

PALO ALTO, CA -- Stanford University researchers have created a way to generate hydrogen fuel using solar power, electrodes and saltwater from the San Francisco Bay.

Hongjie Dai and his research lab at Stanford have developed a prototype that can generate hydrogen fuel from seawater, the Stanford News Service reported.

The findings, published March 18 in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, demonstrate a new way of separating hydrogen and oxygen gas from seawater via electricity. Existing water-splitting methods rely on highly purified water, which is a precious resource and costly to produce, the news service added.

Hydrogen is an appealing option for fuel because it doesn’t emit carbon dioxide, Dai indicated. Burning hydrogen produces only water and should ease worsening climate change problems.
Dai said his lab showed proof-of-concept with a demo, but the researchers will leave it up to manufacturers to scale and mass produce the design.