Hydrogen fuel is one of the most environmentally friendly energy sources. At the same time, getting it is still quite problematic. An invention of experts from Stanford University who recently developed an "artificial lung" may come to the rescue. It won't help you breathe, but it can create raw materials for the production of clean energy, the byproduct of which is only plain water.
The device got its name for a reason. The fact is that it has many things in common with our lungs.
The "lung" created by the Stanford scientists is essentially a pouch made of thick plastic film. Tiny water-repellent pores line the outside of the bag, while gold and platinum nanoparticles line the inside. This is necessary in order to make the membrane selectively permeable. Further, by placing water in the bag and applying voltage, the device, thanks to the above-described elements, allows the generation of clean energy. Moreover, if scientists made the membrane flat, the efficiency, according to them, would fall by 32%.
At the moment, scientists want to optimize their device to work at higher temperatures. At the moment, it does not work at temperatures above 100 degrees Celsius.
Vladimir Kuznetsov
