РОССИЙСКАЯ АКАДЕМИЯ НАУК УРАЛЬСКОЕ ОТДЕЛЕНИЕ ИНСТИТУТ ХИМИИ TBEPДОГО ТЕЛА |
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09.12.2008 | Карта сайта Language |
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Hydrogen is a promising future fuel because its production uses two globally abundant resources - water and sunlight, explains Erwin Reisner, from the Armstrong group. Generating hydrogen requires efficient catalysts, which need to be attached to light-trapping particles. 'There is a search for catalysts that do not use rare, expensive metals such as platinum,' says Reisner. 'Enzymes have long been a source of inspiration.' "There is a search for catalysts that do not use rare, expensive metals such as platinum. Enzymes have long been a source of inspiration" - Erwin Reisner, University of Oxford, UK Researchers have found that platinum catalysts can be replaced with hydrogenase enzymes that have nickel and iron in their active sites. But these hydrogenases are inhibited by oxygen and also the hydrogen they produce. Instead, Armstrong's team used a selenium-containing hydrogenase that is more tolerant to oxygen and hydrogen and binds strongly to titanium dioxide. They put the catalytic system in a water and buffer solution, which provided electrons and protons. When they shone light on the system, it produced hydrogen. Michael Hambourger, who designs bio-inspired devices for solar energy conversion and catalysis in Thomas Moore's lab at Arizona State University, Tempe, US, says the construct is ingenious. 'The stability of this hydrogenase when adsorbed on the titanium dioxide surface is intriguing,' he comments. Reisner says that although the principle has been proved to work, scaling it up to make it a commercial reality will be a challenge. He wants to incorporate a water oxidation catalyst into the device, which he hopes will allow water splitting, producing both hydrogen and oxygen. Fay Riordan Enjoy this story? Spread the word using the 'tools' menu on the left or add a comment to the Chemistry World blog. Link to journal articleCatalytic electrochemistry of a [NiFeSe]-hydrogenase on TiO2 and demonstration of its suitability for visible-light driven H2 production
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