Tuesday 1 March 2011

UK firm develops way to store hydrogen

One of the biggest stumbling blocks on the road to hydrogen power has long been the difficulty in storing the fuel. Hydrogen atoms are so  small that they can
slip between the spaces in molecules of other  materials, and the gas can be a hazard if it escapes.

But a cheap and practical way of storing hydrogen has been developed by a British company. Cella Energy used nanotechnology to develop microbeads – about the size of a grain of sand – that can trap hydrogen and release it when heated.

The energy can then be used safely to power vehicles – drivers could simply top up  with microbeads on filling station forecourts. What's more, the beads  are
not just for hydrogen vehicles - they also work in standard  combustion engines, in which they can be used as an additive to help the  petrol burn more cleanly,
reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/blog/2011/feb/24/uk-firm-hydrogen

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