Duke University researching hydrogen for fuel cells
May 22, 2013 | By
Barbara Vergetis Lundin
Supported by the California Energy Commission, Duke University researchers are working to produce clean hydrogen, which could prove essential to reducing the environmental implications of fossil fuels. Producing and collecting molecular hydrogen for transportation and industry is expensive and complicated, and its byproducts can be toxic. Duke researchers have demonstrated under laboratory conditions that they can reduce carbon monoxide levels to nearly zero in the presence of hydrogen and the harmless byproducts of carbon dioxide and water. They also demonstrated hydrogen production by reforming fuel at much lower temperatures than conventional methods, which is more practical. "Our ultimate goal is to be able to produce hydrogen for use in fuel cells," said Titilayo "Titi" Shodiya, a graduate student working in the laboratory and an author of the research. "Everyone is interested in sustainable and non-polluting ways of producing useful energy without fossil fuels. We were able, through our system, to consistently produce hydrogen with less than 0.002 percent (20 parts per million) of carbon monoxide." Fuel cells produce electricity through chemical reactions, most commonly involving hydrogen. Also, many industrial processes require hydrogen as a chemical reagent and vehicles are beginning to use hydrogen as a primary fuel source. For more: Related Articles:
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