Startup May Hold Key To Cheap, Green Hydrogen Fuel
By Michael d'Estries
January 18, 2008 – 5:43 pm



Auto companies love to tout hydrogen as the clean burning fuel of the future. Unfortunately, while it may be green on the way out — actually producing the hydrogen gas (or liquid) is an extremely energy-intensive process that produces 9.3 kilograms of carbon dioxide for every kilogram of hydrogen. That’s not quite the closed loop clean-energy system often envisioned.

There are some intriguing solutions - the latest of which comes from a new startup called Nanoptek. According to the company, they have come up with a “low-cost, durable titania electrode that can split water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen.” CNET helps put this into laymans terms for the rest of us:

“Sunlight hits the electrode, and the electrode splits the light into a positive charge (called a hole) and an electron. Before the two charges can rejoin, the electron gets captured by the electrode and then is exploited to split water. Silicon solar cells operate on the same principle.”

Apparently, a space 50 feet by 50 feet on a sunny roof could provide enough surface area for a Nanoptek hydrogen generator. This in turn would provide enough hydrogen to meet the demands of a family of four. Granted, this is all very much in the experimental stages — but it’s worth knowing that we’re moving towards this fuel source with full-on research on how to produce it cheaply and cleanly.

Nanoptek has raised $4.7 million in funding to move onto the next stage of development. We’ll be watching closely to see if what they come up with shakes the industry further.

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