Energy News  
Using Microbes To Fuel The US Hydrogen Economy

Edging closer and closer to the future... and hydrogen powered cars. Photo courtesy of AFP.
by Staff Writers
San Francisco CA (SPX) Sep 13, 2006
"If the U.S. is to have a future hydrogen-based economy, we'll need a way to generate abundant quantities of hydrogen safely and economically," said Daniel (Niels) van der Lelie, a biologist at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory.

The focus on hydrogen as a future fuel source is compelling given dwindling supplies of oil and natural gas, as well as escalating costs and the fact that burning fossil fuels releases large amounts of carbon dioxide, a "greenhouse" gas, into the atmosphere. In contrast, burning hydrogen gas (for example, in a fuel cell) produces no pollution. And hydrogen, a constituent of water, is widely abundant.

However, finding simple, inexpensive ways to extract that abundant element and produce it in a pure gaseous form -- a crucial step toward making the "hydrogen economy" a reality -- has been a technological challenge.

Van der Lelie's group reports that experimental setups using Thermatoga neapolitana bacteria given a simple glucose feedstock can generate copious amounts of hydrogen gas at temperatures between 158 and 185 degrees Fahrenheit at atmospheric to elevated pressure. In his talk, van der Lelie will describe the complex biochemistry of these reactions as well as the potential to scale up this system for continuous, farm-based, economical hydrogen production.

One significant finding was that Thermatoga neapolitana produced hydrogen most efficiently in a moderately low-oxygen environment. Previously, hydrogen production by bacteria has only been reported under anaerobic, or oxygen-free, conditions.

"Oxygen normally kills anaerobic microbes like Thermatoga neapolitana," van der Lelie said. That would be a problem for any real-world production facilities, as eliminating all oxygen from production lines could be very expensive. "Our research provides the first evidence that bacteria can efficiently produce hydrogen gas when oxygen is present."

In collaboration with Paul King, a scientist at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, the Brookhaven team is now elucidating the mechanisms by which Thermatoga neapolitana can avoid oxygen toxicity during hydrogen production. "Understanding the oxygen tolerance of Thermatoga neapolitana will facilitate its practical application to produce hydrogen from agricultural resources," van der Lelie said.

Community
Email This Article
Comment On This Article

Related Links
DOE/Brookhaven National Laboratory
Powering The World in the 21st Century
Powering The World in the 21st Century at Energy-Daily.com



Memory Foam Mattress Review
Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily
XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News


MIT Forges Greener Path To Iron Production
Cambridge MA (SPX) Sep 13, 2006
MIT engineers have demonstrated an eco-friendly way to make iron that eliminates the greenhouse gases usually associated with its production. The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) announced recently that the team, led by Donald R. Sadoway of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, has shown the technical viability of producing iron by molten oxide electrolysis (MOE).







  • Using Microbes To Fuel The US Hydrogen Economy
  • MIT Forges Greener Path To Iron Production
  • Air Force Prepares To Test Synthetic Fuel On B-52
  • China Speeds Up Renewable Energy Development

  • Russia Plans Massive Boost In Uranium Production
  • Less-Risky Reactor For Clean, Safe Energy
  • Russia Nuclear Chief Cautious Over IAEA Uranium Reserve Proposal
  • Understanding The Chemistry Of Ionic Liquids For Nuclear Fuel Reprocessing

  • NASA Experiment Finds Possible Trigger For Radio-Busting Bubbles
  • California's Model Skies
  • ESA Picks SSTL To Develop Atmospheric CO2 Detector
  • Faster Atmospheric Warming In Subtropics Pushes Jet Streams Toward Poles

  • Fires Rage As Haze Thickens In Borneo
  • Large-Scale Farming Now Causes Substantial Forest Loss in Amazon
  • The Subtleties Of Tropical Forest Demise
  • NASA Satellites Can See How Climate Change Affects Forests

  • China Rejects Claims Of GM Rice Entering EU Foods
  • GM Chinese Rice Maybe Contaminating European Food
  • French Police Arrest Three As Hundreds Try To Destroy GM Crops
  • Japanese Sushi Infatuation Straining Atlantic Tuna Stocks

  • Real-Time Traffic Routing From The Comfort Of Your Car
  • Real-Time Traffic Routing From The Comfort Of Your Car
  • British Police Force To Introduce Greener Cars
  • Two New Segway Models Offered

  • US Sanctions On Russia Could Hurt Boeing
  • Boeing Puts Aircraft Market At 2.6 Trillion Dollars
  • Innovative Solutions Make Transportation Systems Safer Secure and Efficient
  • Joint Strike Fighter Is Not Flawed Finds Australian Government

  • Could NASA Get To Pluto Faster? Space Expert Says Yes - By Thinking Nuclear
  • NASA plans to send new robot to Jupiter
  • Los Alamos Hopes To Lead New Era Of Nuclear Space Tranportion With Jovian Mission
  • Boeing Selects Leader for Nuclear Space Systems Program

  • The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2006 - SpaceDaily.AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA PortalReports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additionalcopyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement