There are many fossil fuels that causes environmental pollution, gasoline is one of them, which is based on hydrocarbon and lead to pollution. It was proposed since 1970 to replace fossil fuel in the place of hydrogen, because hydrogen is the best alternative of fossil fuels. There is one problem regarding hydrogen is that its potential has not been proved partially because of its storage and commercial production difficulties. Many researches have been done regarding renewable sources such as hydrogen. In recent times, research has been successful in developing a new way for storing hydrogen.
Difficulties faced in usage of hydrogen
Hydrogen is considered to be the most clean renewable energy source, if there will be no problem regarding safe storage and easy access. The traditional way of using hydrogen was not successful at all. Instead of using high volume of hydrogen, it is easy to use less volume of hydrogen, which is easy in storing and commercially feasible. Hydrogen is the renewable energy source so it is necessary to store this energy because it is only fuel that is eco friendly and do not comprises any pollution and do not cause any problem regarding human health.
New way of storing hydrogen
In U.S. at Lawrence Berkeley national laboratory, department of energy, a group of scientists has discovered a new material, which can store hydrogen, called air-stable magnesium nano-composites. This material comprises of nano- particles of magnesium metal scattered by matrix of polymethyl methacrylate : a polymer related to Plexiglas.
Advantages of new material
This air-stable magnesium nano-composites has the ability to hold and release hydrogen at normal temperature without oxidizing metal, it is a pliable material too. This device is the better source for storing hydrogen, hydrogen batteries and hydrogen fuel cells. With the help of this, material scientists have come up with the solution regarding those batteries, which are thermodynamic and kinetic in nature. This is the first research that made scientist able to design this type of composite material that is nano scale and capable of storing hydrogen without any loss in its volume and in its density.
Observing the new material scientifically
At national center for electron microscopy, the scientist team observed the material and its reaction through 0.5 microscopes. This team trapped the behavior of hydrogen in this storage material after that they proceed towards the performance of the hydrogen in this air-stable magnesium nano-composites material. Energy and environmental technologies division was still doing research on the technologies related to the renewable energies, their generation and the storage capacity of hydrogen.
Role of DOE- Nano scale science research centers (NSRCs)
The NSRCs are a group who are researching in depth regarding nano-scale materials; it is a group of five facilities having state of art. Development of infrastructure of these facilities is only possible because of the DOE. This development is only possible with the help of cutting-edge microscopy at NCEM, tools and expertise from EETD, and the materials from the MSD.
