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New Way To Split Water Into Hydrogen And Oxygen
- electromagnetic 18y agoImpressive, I don't think I've ever heard of someone creating what's basically a man-made enzyme. It's a bonus that this will provide a great step toward usable, cheap hydrogen.
- ars 18y agoIt's a catalyst, not an enzyme (enzymes are biological), and there certainly are man made ones.
- electromagnetic 18y agoActually if you read the article it's a metal complex with an organic complex attached. So it is, in fact, both.
- 10ren 18y agoOrganic doesn't necessarily imply biological: in chemistry, an organic compound is one that contains carbon.
- 10ren 18y ago> ‘Because hydrogen peroxide is considered a relatively unstable molecule, scientists have always disregarded this step, deeming it implausible; but we have shown otherwise,’ Worth remembering when you're trying to do something new. Anyone know if the metal/organic catalyst is toxic?
- Shamiq 18y agoHydrogen peroxide? It will break down into water and oxygen molecules very quickly in the presence of sunlight, so I don't really deem it to be toxic. However, as H2O2, it is corrosive.
- 10ren 18y agoNo, the "metal-organic" catalyst mentioned in the article. It's apparently a "metal complex of the element ruthenium". H2O2 is produced as an intermediate product. My comment only makes sense in the context of the article. :-)
- miked 18y ago>> Anyone know if the metal/organic catalyst is toxic? I don't know about ruthenium in particular, but almost all heavy metals are toxic to humans. That's because they can often substitute for similar, desirable metals (almost always lighter) in various biomolecules, but not function properly when substituted. In other words, the heavy metals are similar enough to bind to some active site, but not similar enough to perform the correct function. Ruthenuium's properties are very similar to iron's, which sounds like trouble.
- deleted 18y ago[deleted]
- patrickg-zill 18y agoRuthenium is rare, I would not be surprised if later research centered around the use of more available platinum group metals such as palladium.
- silentOpen 18y agoEven palladium is expensive! The price of palladium is a major factor in hydrogen fuel cell costs.
- patrickg-zill 18y agoAssuming the linked chart is accurate, it seems that ruthenium is currently about half the cost of palladium, however it has in the past been much more - up to $800 per ounce. Current price of palladium: $237 per ounce Current price of ruthenium: $80-90 per ounce http://www.ebullionguide.com/price-chart-ruthenium-all-time.aspx http://www.ebullionguide.com/price-chart-ruthenium-all-time.... (note, ounces are Troy ounces, which is 480 grains or 31.1 grams)