Could be another pie in the sky idea, but one could always hope. – Anthony
A new catalyst could help speed development of inexpensive home-brewed solar energy systems for powering homes and plug-in cars during the day (left) and for producing electricity from a fuel cell at night (right). Credit: Patrick Gillooly/MIT
BOSTON — The era of personalized energy systems — in which individual homes and small businesses produce their own energy for heating, cooling and powering cars — took another step toward reality today as scientists reported discovery of a powerful new catalyst that is a key element in such a system. They described the advance, which could help free homes and businesses from dependence on the electric company and the corner gasoline station, at the 240th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society, being held here this week.
“Our goal is to make each home its own power station,” said study leader Daniel Nocera, Ph.D. “We’re working toward development of ‘personalized’ energy units that can be manufactured, distributed and installed inexpensively. There certainly are major obstacles to be overcome — existing fuel cells and solar cells must be improved, for instance. Nevertheless, one can envision villages in India and Africa not long from now purchasing an affordable basic system.”
Such a system would consist of rooftop solar energy panels to produce electricity for heating, cooking, lighting, and to charge the batteries on the homeowners’ electric cars. Surplus electricity would go to an “electrolyzer,” a device that breaks down ordinary water into its two components, hydrogen and oxygen. Both would be stored in tanks. In the dark of night, when the solar panels cease production, the system would shift gears, feeding the stored hydrogen and oxygen into a fuel cell that produces electricity (and clean drinking water as a byproduct). Such a system would produce clean electricity 24 hours a day, seven days a week — even when the sun isn’t shining.
Nocera’s report focused on the electrolyzer, which needs catalysts — materials that jumpstart chemical reactions like the ones that break water up into hydrogen and oxygen. He is with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Mass. Good catalysts already are available for the part of the electrolyzer that produces hydrogen. Lacking, however, have been inexpensive, long-lasting catalysts for the production of oxygen. The new catalyst fills that gap and boosts oxygen production by 200-fold. It eliminates the need for expensive platinum catalysts and potentially toxic chemicals used in making them.
The new catalyst has been licensed to Sun Catalytix, which envisions developing safe, super-efficient versions of the electrolyzer, suitable for homes and small businesses, within two years.
The National Science Foundation and the Chesonis Family Foundation provided funding for this study. Nocera did the research with post-doctoral researcher Mircea Dinca and doctoral candidate Yogesh Surendranath. The U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency has recently awarded the team with a grant, which it plans to use to search for related compounds that can further increase the efficiency of its electrolyzer technology. The team hopes that nickel-borate belongs to a family of compounds that can be optimized for super-efficient, long-term energy storage technologies.
The American Chemical Society is a non-profit organization chartered by the U.S. Congress. With more than 161,000 members, ACS is the world’s largest scientific society and a global leader in providing access to chemistry-related research through its multiple databases, peer-reviewed journals and scientific conferences. Its main offices are in Washington, D.C., and Columbus, Ohio.
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“Such a system would produce clean electricity 24 hours a day, seven days a week — even when the sun isn’t shining.”
That line is a bit much. A fuel cell combined with a fuel stockpile is commonly known as a battery. And it would be odd to claim that a battery is “producing electricity.”
It’s fundamentally filling the tank (charging) during the day and converting the stored energy into usable AC (discharging) during the less-sun filled hours.
Also note that there have been developments toward a direct catalyst (H2O + light -> H2 + O2) as opposed to the scheme proposed here (light + photocell -> electricity. Electricity + H2O -> H2 + O2).
There is alway a need for cheap oxygen sources. If this production system is cheaper than membrane technologies it could easily be a winner, even if the fuel cell angle does not pan out.
Count me a skeptic. Hydrogen is simply too small to act as a good battery (aka energy storage unit).
Also, Nuclear is getting cheaper and cheaper. I think the Japanese are working on self contained small reactors you could drop ship to small towns. Turn it on, out comes power. That’s “plug and play.”
We have to get over Jane Fonda and push nuclear.
I think the 24 hours /day is over the top unless they have a new breakthrough. Storing hydrogen and oxygen? What pressurizes the storage tanks-an electric pump? I think it may turn out to be pie – sour lemon.
I suspect the Sun has to shine at least some of the time for this to work. Having just had the coldest wettest August in over a dozen years I think the tanks would be well and truly dry by now. Good for Africa maybe (where it is arguably most needed anyway).
I do take exception to the idea that it would produce drinking water. The H2O would need to be topped up and reused by the electrolyzer in the next cycle. (Unless it can use dirty water, then the system acts as a purifier too!)
Worth keeping an eye on – but a little ways from an off the shelf product yet.
If you think that government controlled electricity utilities would allow the general public to generate their own energy, you are barmy. It will be like everything else. As soon as water conservation drops revenues, they up the rates.
What utter nonsense … when you split water to make the Hydrogen you get the oxygen … can’t make “more” oxygen than is in the water … snake oil …
Alan S. Blue says: September 1, 2010 at 5:40 pm
“It’s fundamentally filling the tank (charging) during the day and converting the stored energy into usable AC (discharging) during the less-sun filled hours.”
It is cheaper than the existing organic battery technology:
1. Plan a tree.
2. Let it grow.
3. Cut it down.
4. Burn it.
Repeat as required.
Carbon Neutral, Inexpensive, Widely understood, Green and Organic to boot!
For Carbon Capture and Storage with a Recycling option , change step 4 to:
4. Use the wood for housing and furniture and recycle the scraps back into the biosphere (burn them) and free the carbon to make new trees.
PS. I already have such a system, works great!
Wait, but isn’t there Oxygen in the atmosphere already?
And, we still have not gotten around the cost and obtrusiveness of the solar panel system. To power a full house full of electronics and people, the system would necessarily be large.
And, I don’t know about you, but I am uncomfortable storing HYDROGEN near my house. Have a house with a two-year old? Am sure they are perfectly safe and trustworthy……
Am sure too, that this system would be perfectly fine on a house in Columbia or even Texas. But what about the states of Washington, Idaho, Oregon, and other northern latitude areas? Those would need to double the size of the solar panels.
I constructed a solar powered data collection station in Eastern Washington. It was designed to be self-sufficient. I had to build it with 8 75-watt panels plus a propane generator backup. We ran out of propane quite a bit during the winter months. Should have built the system with 12 panels at least. And that would have covered the area of a typical home’s roof. And that was just for something small.
E. Robichaud says:
September 1, 2010 at 5:59 pm
If you think that government controlled electricity utilities would allow the general public to generate their own energy, you are barmy.
I guess it depends where you are. My local community is currently installing an “Archimedes Screw” type micro-hydro station in the nearby river. It is expected to power about 500 homes. The responsible government agency is positively encouraging it. (OK so I put in a good word – but still, it can happen!)
Surplus electricity??? Exactly how many solar panels do they intend to put on the roof to achieve that?? The average solar household that’s disconnected from the grid today uses gas for heating and cooking because both are dealing in 1000’s of watts yet the solar panels are dealing in 100s of watts. And they want to run a car as well!!!
I lived with solar at a latitude of 28 and I only got 6 hours of power per day, the other 18 hours you are relying on storage.
this is just pie in the sky BS!!
Another kind of personal energy system here. We can all be self-sufficient!
It is a net energy sink.
You will need some pumps/compressors to get the H2/O2 to their repositories.
It looks like this would be useful only where there is nothing else available. Areas like that should be getting more scarce as the “third world” moves into the 21st Century. The required improvements mentioned in the article may come just in time to be too late. 🙂
Presumably this improved catalyst would have other uses, however.
Hear hear. This is the chemistry I was taught. 2H2O->2H2 + O2
Jeff says:
September 1, 2010 at 6:01 pm
What utter nonsense … when you split water to make the Hydrogen you get the oxygen … can’t make “more” oxygen than is in the water … snake oil …
The only difference between this and standard home photovoltaic systems is the replacement of batteries with a fuel cell. To be worthwhile, the fuel cell would have to be cheaper and/or more efficient than batteries, and there is no data in this article that suggests this.
Photovoltaic electricity doesn’t do well outside the tropics where winters are cold (and usually cloudy). You need a large overcapacity of panels that becomes redundant in summer. Either that, or depend mostly on backup systems in winter.
That looks almost reasonable.
I kind of like the Honda HES . I am a Honda guy.
I just looked into Solar power for my home.
Its a mess.
The salespeople came and made measurements and did calculations.
My roof is not as well situated as I had hoped.
Plus there are regs. You can’t generate more than you currently use !
I would be allowed to generate 65% of my current usage. (They can only install in “optimum locations” so I can’t even put some in the less god spots )
Yet I am supposed to believe that “credits” will be issued, by the power company, for me generating energy , having not covered myself, which I can sell on a “market” and supposedly that income would cover the cost of the 18 year loan to
“lease” the solar generating equipment which I can then pay again to own.
I expressed some misgivings.
How long can I expect this credit scheme to actually last ?
No answer.
How can PSEG ( Utility) pay me for just making my own electricity, since only making 65% of what I use means very little to the “grid”. ?
No answer.
Since I am only “leasing” the system, will the company service it and upgrade
to better elements when they become available ?
No answer.
And how long do the elements actually last ?
No answer.
I would still take the chance, but the wife ( whose idea it was in the first place) said “No deal”.
Solar cells do NOT convert photons to electrons. The photons ‘release’ electrons stored in near pure Silicon sheets, which travel to light blocking surface grids for removal. This is ‘electricity’ by material erosion which drops off in electrical production rapidly after twenty years. It takes seven years of use, with CARBON FUEL BASED PRODUCTION to make a solar cell. If ‘solar energy’ was used, that would require twenty years of elecric production to produce a solar cell with a twenty year life. The same limitations apply to the battery side of the equation, where plates erode thru use. A carbon based fuel cell improvement would be welcome. Reliance on silicon based solar cells and batteeries is merely treading water and is not swimming forward.
The 240th meeting ? Does the American Chemical Society meet twice a year ?
This research was summarized in a recent issue of Chemical and Engineering News, a weekly publication of the American Chemical Society whose Editor-in Chief is a confirmed AGW supporter. The details of where the oxygen goes were not disclosed. Also in a recent issue was a report on development of flexible plastic solar cells rather than rigid glass-covered ones. If successful, they could be made very cheaply.
I work for a large electric utility in the USA (American Electric Power) and I would like to fix one common misconception/misrepresentation. Utilities are obligated BY LAW to serve every customer that wants power. Customers ARE NOT obligated to buy that electricity from utilities. If you want to go “off the grid” have a ball. Most people just want to use their own system when it’s available but expect the utility to maintain a distribution connection to their house for use at their beckon call.
The new catalyst is the old, tax payers money. Good for the chemists to do the research and I hope the catalyst finds a profitable use, but as the ultimate battery I doubt it.The renewable off grid systems do not have the capacities we take for granted as others here point out.
Energy in the home is utilised mostly in the form of “heat”. For washing cooking and coffee.
It should be a capital felony offense to consume electricity to create “heat”.
So solar energy should be captured in the home as heat and stored as heat. You need several “qualities” of heat. Flat plate colelctors are ok for swimming pool heaters; parabolic troughs can make truly hot water for laundry, dish washing, and showers. And three dimensional focussing can generate cooking temperatures.
Then you need a couple of square feet of PV cells to run your emergency radio, and the electric toothbrush.
putting up acres of solar cells is the brute force expensive way to do it. You can use a basement full of volcanic rocks (scoria) to store plenty of hot air.
Going pEV is like longlining for sailfish, marlin and tuna to grind up for fertilizer to grow corn and vegetables. People should be shot for doing that.
A lot of “hope and change” in that article. In the software biz, it would be called “vaporware”.
We start off with the statement that better solar cells need to be created. Well that has been the problem with solar energy from day one. Then we have the fact that you can’t create more energy than the sun provided in the day.
I’ve been looking at self contained solar/battery/gen backup systems for my place in FL. For my system, and this one, you cannot end up with more energy than the sun gives you, and if you hope to keep your solar panel costs below the Ionosphere, this isn’t very much. You need ingenuity to devise a usage plan that is economical yet still convenient.
Super-insulation is key, as well as highly efficient appliances. (Like brushless 12V DC A/C units) or evaporative if you’re in the right area. There are chest style refrigerators with ultra low consumption, and solar trickle pumps for your well. Insulating and elevating stored water can avoid the power needed for a pressurized system.
Still, you can’t end up with more than you started with. It’s a challenge.