Sounds very promising for both solar and hydrogen economies! http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2008/oxygen-0731.html Utilizes abundant materials in neutral water under ambient conditions. Here's the abstract from Science published today: Quote: <TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=6 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=alt2 style="BORDER-RIGHT: 1px inset; BORDER-TOP: 1px inset; BORDER-LEFT: 1px inset; BORDER-BOTTOM: 1px inset">Published Online July 31, 2008 Science DOI: 10.1126/science.1162018 Science Express Index Reports Submitted on June 19, 2008 Accepted on July 18, 2008 In Situ Formation of an Oxygen-Evolving Catalyst in Neutral Water Containing Phosphate and Co2+ Matthew W. Kanan 1 and Daniel G. Nocera 1* 1 Department of Chemistry, 6-335, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139–4307, USA. * To whom correspondence should be addressed. Daniel G. Nocera , E-mail: nocera@mit.edu The utilization of solar energy on a large scale requires its storage. In natural photosynthesis, energy from sunlight is used to rearrange the bonds of water to O2 and H2-equivalents. The realization of artificial systems that perform similar "water splitting" requires catalysts that produce O2 from water without the need for excessive driving potentials. Here, we report such a catalyst that forms upon the oxidative polarization of an inert indium tin oxide electrode in phosphate-buffered water containing Co2+. A variety of analytical techniques indicates the presence of phosphate in an approximate 1:2 ratio with cobalt in this material. The pH dependence of the catalytic activity also implicates HPO42– as the proton acceptor in the O2-producing reaction. This catalyst not only forms in situ from earth-abundant materials but also operates in neutral water under ambient conditions. </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE> http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/abstract/1162018 Amazing what can be done when there is research money available for alternative energy research...
