Scientists make major breakthrough that could unlock futuristic energy source: 'The potential savior'
Scalable green hydrogen has long eluded researchers. Historically, scientists have relied on electricity-powered electrolyzers to split water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen for fuel cells. Fuel cells, according to the U.S. Department of Energy, are a kind of battery. They rely on hydrogen rather than fossil fuels to run, minimizing pollution.
Green hydrogen would appear to offer a neat solution, but the reality is far more complicated. Traditional electrolyzers used proton-exchange membranes, which depended on iridium (a rare metal) to function. Iridium's rarity made green hydrogen difficult to scale and sell en masse.
However, researchers have found a new way to power these electrolyzers, making the process greener than before: anion-exchange membranes (AEMs).
"This has long been considered the potential savior to a lot of issues with other types of electrolysis that we've been trying to scale," Lindsey Motlow, a physicist, told IEEE Spectrum.
What makes AEM a "savior"? It uses cheaper, more common metals like nickel and steel. While it's worked in labs, it hasn't been scaled yet. But that's poised to change.
These research teams, located in both the U.S. and France, are backed by big companies interested in the growing renewable energy market.
Hydrogen fuel cells can be used to power just about anything, from light bulbs to electric vehicles. Basically, if it runs on electricity, a hydrogen fuel cell can power it, per Columbia Climate School.
Not only do they reduce pollution, but they generate three times as much power as your average fossil fuel.
The CEO of Ecolectro, a U.S.-based green hydrogen company, told IEEE Spectrum that they're building their first commercial-scale units. In France, Michelin is working on making AEMs more durable. While they both have a long way to go, this is definitely a solid first step.
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Radioactive wasp nests have been found near former nuclear weapons production site
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New York Post
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- New York Post
Radioactive wasp nest found at American Cold War-era nuclear bomb site
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Radioactive wasp nest found at site where US once made nuclear bombs
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Workers at a site in South Carolina that once made key parts for nuclear bombs in the U.S. have found a radioactive wasp nest but officials said there is no danger to anyone. Employees who routinely check radiation levels at the Savannah River Site near Aiken found a wasp nest on July 3 on a post near tanks where liquid nuclear waste is stored, according to a report from the U.S. Department of Energy. The nest had a radiation level 10 times what is allowed by federal regulations, officials said. The workers sprayed the nest with insect killer, removed it and disposed of it as radioactive waste. No wasps were found, officials said. The report said there is no leak from the waste tanks, and the nest was likely radioactive through what it called 'onsite legacy radioactive contamination' from the residual radioactivity left from when the site was fully operational. The watchdog group Savannah River Site Watch said the report was at best incomplete since it doesn't detail where the contamination came from, how the wasps might have encountered it and the possibility there could be another radioactive nest if there is a leak somewhere. Knowing the type of wasp nest could also be critical — some wasps make nest out of dirt and others use different material which could pinpoint where the contamination came from, Tom Clements, executive director of the group, wrote in a text message. 'I'm as mad as a hornet that SRS didn't explain where the radioactive waste came from or if there is some kind of leak from the waste tanks that the public should be aware of,' Clements said. The tank farm is well inside the boundaries of the site and wasps generally fly just a few hundred yards from their nests, so there is no danger they are outside the facility, according to a statement from Savannah River Mission Completion which now oversees the site. If there had been wasps found, they would have significantly lower levels of radiation than their nests, according to the statement which was given to the Aiken Standard. The site was opened in the early 1950s to manufacture the plutonium pits needed to make the core of nuclear bombs during the start of the Cold War with the Soviet Union. Now the site has shifted toward making fuel for nuclear plants and clean up. The site generated more than 165 million gallons (625 million liters) of liquid nuclear waste which has, through evaporation, been reduced to about 34 million gallons (129 million liters), according to Savannah River Mission Completion.
