Blood Protein Used to Split Water

brian0918 writes "The Imperial College in London is reporting that genetically-engineered blood protein can be used to split water into oxygen and hydrogen. The abstract can be viewed for free from the Journal of the American Chemical Society." From the article: "Scientists have combined two molecules that occur naturally in blood to engineer a molecular complex that uses solar energy to split water into hydrogen and oxygen. This molecular complex can use energy from the sun to create hydrogen gas, providing an alternative to electrolysis, the method typically used to split water into its constituent parts. The breakthrough may pave the way for the development of novel ways of creating hydrogen gas for use as fuel in the future."

Comments

protestors...

[User 956]

The Imperial College in London is reporting that genetically-engineered blood protein can be used to split water into oxygen and hydrogen.

I can hear it now... "No blood for oil! or hydrogen!"

Very exciting!

[__aagmrb7289]

I eagerly await the return to the days of human/animal sacrifice. "It's for the good of the country! We need to have more SUVs on the road!" Bow down, I say!

Re:Very exciting!

[Skidge]

The Red Cross can just roll it into their blood drives: "Give a pint of blood and fill up your hydrogen tank!"

They compare their efficiency to chlorophyll

[Anonymous Coward]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chromophore
"The efficiency of the photoproduction of H2 was greater than that of the system using the well-known organic chromophore, tetrakis(1-methylpyridinium-4-yl)porphinatozinc(II ) (ZnTMPyP4+), under the same conditions."

So, if we can get plants to produce this we can have hydrogen plants.

Re:Next:

[Jherico]

You mean these?

Re:How effecient is this?

[jalet]

> Do you have to refuel this?

Yes, but they are still wondering if it's better to refill this stuff with water, or with human bodies...

Finally reading about...

[fahrbot-bot]

...something on the bleeding edge of technology here on /.

Ok, ok, OK. I promise not to post for the entire weekend, sigh.
Damn.

Re:How effecient is this?

[smackt4rd]

Just catch some small animals and stuff them in the gas-tank. :)

The Brits will love this.

[Roadkills-R-Us]

I can hear it now.

``Bloody hydrogen!''

Re:We really don't want to do that.

[_argonauta]

now immagine that water molecules could fight back! what a mess! war of the worlds! (hypothetical joke, of course)

Re:Energy output = input?

[Foofoobar]

Note the complete lack of superlatives.

So greater!=surpasses? I'd suggest a dictionary if I thought you literate enough to even understand what a superlative is.

Re:age old mistery finally solved !

[ibn_khaldun]

Moses would have happily run the service on Sunday; it was Saturday he would have skipped. Hmmm, except he didn't even have those laws yet, and when he did, Version 1.0 crashed (literally) and only Version 2.0 was widely marketed. Success of the product is still debated.