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Penn State Live - Solar cell directly splits water for hydrogen Boston, Mass. -- Plants trees and algae do it. Even some bacteria and moss do it, but scientists have had a difficult time developing methods to turn sunlight into useful fuel. Now, Penn State researchers have a proof-of-concept device that can split water and produce recoverable hydrogen. "This is a proof-of-concept system that is very inefficient. But ultimately, catalytic systems with 10 to 15 percent solar conversion efficiency might be achievable," said Thomas E. Although solar cells can now produce electricity from visible light at efficiencies of greater than 10 percent, solar hydrogen cells -- like those developed by Craig Grimes, professor of electrical engineering at Penn State -- have been limited by the poor spectral response of the semiconductors used. So far, experiments with natural and synthetic dye molecules have produced either hydrogen or oxygen-using chemicals consumed in the process, but have not yet created an ongoing, continuous process. Mallouk and W. The U.S.

Thorium reactors a silver bullet for our looming energy crisis? Like it or not, the world is facing a looming energy crisis as we continue to burn through the planet’s available fossil fuels at an alarming rate. A gallon of gasoline that used to cost under a dollar back in the 80′s and early 90′s is now averaging over $4.00, placing financial strain on industry and consumers the world over. Researchers have been working feverishly in the past ten-years to try to find viable alternatives that can produce abundant energy. One such technology that is being looked at closely is liquid fluoride thorium reactors, a “breeder” power source that could provide enough energy to satisfy the world’s consumption indefinitely. While that may sound like a pipe-dream, science is showing how Thorium could eventually replace fossil-fuels all together in the next twenty-years if the world’s countries would get serious about development. Disasters like Chernobyl and Fukushima have given the public a bad taste in their mouths when it comes to nuclear energy. More at WNYC