Can hydrogen be produced from seawater? The standard method requires water to be purified, which is expensive to do and adds complexity to the device. David Krause at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, Stanford University describes new research there that uses electrolysis and a double membrane directly on the seawater to separate out the chloride and isolate the hydrogen and hydroxides. The system operates without generating toxic … [Read more...]
Getting Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) down to $0.05 per kWh
The U.S. Department of Energy is funding research to get the cost of Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) down to $0.05 per kWh. One key element of that research is the materials used to absorb and store the heat energy. Three categories of materials are being looked at: liquid (i.e. molten salt), particle (like sand), and gaseous. NREL is leading the molten salt research, and there are multiple challenges. The salts can corrode the storage tanks and … [Read more...]
