Piezo Crystals Harness Sound To Generate Hydrogen

MikeChino writes "Scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have discovered that a mix of zinc oxide crystals, water, and noise pollution can efficiently produce hydrogen without the need for a dirty catalyst like oil. To generate the clean hydrogen, researchers produced a new type of zinc oxide crystals that absorb vibrations when placed in water. The vibrations cause the crystals to develop areas with strong positive and negative charges — a reaction that rips the surrounding water molecules and releases hydrogen and oxygen. The mechanism, dubbed the piezoelectrochemical effect, converts 18% of energy from vibrations into hydrogen gas (compared to 10% from conventional piezoelectric materials), and since any vibration can produce the effect, the system could one day be used to generate power from anything that produces noise — cars whizzing by on the highway, crashing waves in the ocean, or planes landing at an airport."

Comments

Re:This SOUNDS Like A Breakthrough!

[sackvillian]

But can it produce enough electricity to power a small radio that plays the music used to create the vibrations necessary to produce the electricity?

No.

Sincerely yours,

The Second Law of Thermodynamics

Re:Thermodynamics

[WalksOnDirt]

hydrogen gas... Which has a narrow fuel air mix

I don't think so.

Flammability Concentration Limits
Hydrogen 4% to 75%
Gasoline 1.4% to 7.6%

The auto-ignition temperature is indeed higher for hydrogen, 500 Celsius compared to 280 for gasoline. I had not known that.