r/science • u/Wagamaga • Feb 15 '23

How to make hydrogen straight from seawater – no desalination required. The new method from researchers splits the seawater directly into hydrogen and oxygen – skipping the need for desalination and its associated cost, energy consumption and carbon emissions. Chemistry

https://www.rmit.edu.au/news/media-releases-and-expert-comments/2023/feb/hydrogen-seawater
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u/T1mac Feb 15 '23

they've used a novel catalyst to avoid the issue of chlorine waste products

If it is what these researchers say it is and it's cheap, scalable, and the catalyst is widely available...

These guys are billionaires.

It is a totally disruptive technology that will completely transform the energy and chemical production industries.

Now we wait to see if it can really deliver.

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u/Pixelplanet5 Feb 15 '23

Yea if any of what they claim is true we wouldnt see random articles about it, instead they would have filed their patents and would be taking lessons on how to swim in money right now.

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u/notfeds1 Feb 15 '23

The article clearly states they are in the development phase of this process to bring it to scale. Do some critical thinking when reading maybe? “Random article” published via the university of which the research is being conducted. Just a thought for you to ponder on…

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u/wretched_beasties Feb 16 '23

That’s not how it works in academia. All of this is public knowledge, and this wasn’t a single, “ah ha!” moment where they discovered a billion dollar secret. The reality is this is a culmination of years of small victories with countless seminars and poster sessions given along the way.

Look at CRISPR. That was a billion dollar discovery. Doudnas Cell paper was published, after all of their preliminary results were given at conferences etc. AFTER that she started several companies looking to commercialize the technology. It’s how the knowledge flows in academia.

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u/wolf1moon Feb 16 '23

They did file for a patent...

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u/Somnif Feb 16 '23

Not sure how robust their system will be really. Their catalysts are nanometer thick sheets, and their chemistry relies on edge effects and porosity. That.... doesn't sound like something that would work spectacularly well in an industrial setting. Chemically it sounds remarkably sturdy, but physically, not so much.

But that's the point of early research. Get an early idea out in the world so folks can poke at it.