A new kind of paint could change the future (and color) of green energy.
The emerging technology of “solar paint” produces hydrogen, the cleanest form of energy, merely from water vapor in the air.
Researchers from RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia created a new compound that splits moisture in the air into hydrogen and oxygen. It works in a similar way to moisture-absorbing silica packets used to keep food, medicine, and electronics dry.
The scientists found that by mixing the compound, called synthetic molybdenum-sulphide, with white paint containing the pigment titanium oxide, it acted as a catalyst for the hydrogen-producing reaction, according to Curbed.
“There’s no need for clean or filtered water to feed the system. Any place that has water vapor in the air, even remote areas far from water, can produce fuel,” lead researcher Dr. Torben Daeneke said in a press release.
Hydrogen can be used in combustion engines, serving as an alternative source fossil. It can also be easily stored in fuel cells.
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