There is currently a strong incentive among the scientific community to research clean, renewable energy sources to address challenges in sustainable global development. Through solar fuels, scientists can convert solar energy to chemical energy stored in chemical fuels such as clean-burning hydrogen.
Solar fuels started to really accelerate in 1972 when Akira Fujishima and Kenichi Honda developed a titanium dioxide-based photoelectrochemical cell to split water to generate hydrogen.
Now, researchers from Eindhoven University of Technology have discovered a new way to improve upon this process through the novel way of processing the material gallium phosphide (GaP).
The researchers, including ECS member Peter Notten, began exploring different applications of GaP due to its capacity in both energy conversion and water-splitting. However, this is a very precious material and would yield a high price point in manufacturing.
To resolve this issue the researchers processed the GaP in the form of very small nanowires, which mean 10,000 times less of this material is needed.
“For the nanowires we needed ten thousand [times] less precious GaP material than in cells with a flat surface,” says research leader and TU/e professor Erik Bakkers. “That makes these kinds of cells potentially a great deal cheaper. In addition, GaP is also able to extract oxygen from the water – so you then actually have a fuel cell in which you can temporarily store your solar energy. In short, for a solar fuels future we cannot ignore gallium phosphide any longer.”
[Sources: Interface, Eindhoven University of Technology, Gizmag]
