As researchers of MIT’s Nocera Lab, led by Dr. Daniel Nocera, claimed that they have successfully created a feasible artificial leaf uniquely composed from inexpensive materials, it can be perceived as a nigh revolutionary advancement made in the field of chemistry. The fascinating development was announced at the National Meeting of the American Chemical Society on March 27.
Basically contrived of silicon, electronic components and low-cost chemical catalysts like cobalt and nickel for initiating reactions, this leaf can successfully utilize sunlight for “photosynthesis,” i.e. to break water into hydrogen and oxygen, which in effect can most conveniently produce electricity. According to the lab’s observations, these playing card sized leaves have emanated a uniform output of power for 45 continuous hours, without any instability issues.
The next big step for the researchers would be to accentuate upon the total efficiency and energy output of these ingeniously conceived leaves. Once they are reliably composed enough to be manufactured in a large scale, such “naturalistic” power generators can be optimally used in a number of diverse hydrogen-based “green” technologies. A good example can be found in one of our previous articles.
Source: PopSci
