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Hydrogen Fuel from Sunlight

By Guest PostSeptember 13, 2013Sciencealexandra krawicz, artificial photosynthesis, berkeley lab, caltech, carbohydrate sugars, carbon dioxide, carbon dioxide reduction, earth abundant elements, eitan anzenberg, free electrons, gallium phosphide, gary moore, generate electricity, green sustainable energy, hydrogen fuel, hydrogen ions, hydrogen producing catalysts, ian sharp, jinhui yang, junko yano, non photoactive substrates, photoelectrochemical operations, protons, sunlight

Berkeley Lab Researchers at Joint Center for Artificial Photosynthesis Make Unique Semiconductor/Catalyst Construct

In the search for clean, green sustainable energy sources to meet human needs for generations to come, perhaps no technology matches the ultimate potential of artificial photosynthesis. Bionic leaves that could produce energy-dense fuels from nothing more than sunlight, water and atmosphere-warming carbon dioxide, with no byproducts other than oxygen, represent an ideal alternative to fossil fuels but also pose numerous scientific challenges. A major step toward meeting at least one of these challenges has been achieved by researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) working at the Joint Center for Artificial Photosynthesis (JCAP).

“We’ve developed a method by which molecular hydrogen-producing catalysts can be interfaced with a semiconductor that absorbs visible light,” says Gary Moore, a chemist with Berkeley Lab’s Physical Biosciences Division and principal investigator for JCAP. “Our experimental results indicate that the catalyst and the light-absorber are interfaced structurally as well as functionally.” (more…)

Mug Handles Could Help Hot Plasma Give Lower-Cost, Controllable Fusion Energy

By Guest PostOctober 12, 2012Scienceaaron hossack, association, asymmetric current, atomic energy, atoms, brian nelson, brian victor, chris hansen, cihan ackay, coffee mug, core, david ennis, efficient alternative, electromagnetic waves, energy source, equilibrium, france, fusion power, fusion reactor, george marklin, helicity injection, high frequency, hydrogen ions, international, kyle morgan, magnetic bottle, magnetic fields, nathaniel hicks, nuclear fission, nuclear power, plasma, prototype, radioactive waste, reactor, roger smith, san diego, shutdown, thomas jarboe, university, Washington

Researchers around the world are working on an efficient, reliable way to contain the plasma used in fusion reactors, potentially bringing down the cost of this promising but technically elusive energy source. A new finding from the University of Washington could help contain and stabilize the plasma using as little as 1 percent of the energy required by current methods.

“All of a sudden the current energy goes from being almost too much to almost negligible,” said lead author Thomas Jarboe, a UW professor of aeronautics and astronautics. He presents the findings this week at the International Atomic Energy Association’s 24^th annual Fusion Energy Conference in San Diego. (more…)

A New Way of Looking at Photosystem II

By Guest PostJune 14, 2012Sciencealgae, angstroms, bacteria, berkeley lab, carbon dioxide, catalytic cycle, critical formation, cryogenic freezing, electrochemical energy, electrons, femtosecond timescale, femtosecond x ray pulses, green, green plants, hydrogen atom, hydrogen ions, jan kern, junko yano, knowledge, lcls, microcrystals, nicholas sauter, oxidation states, oxygen molecules, paul adams, photooxidation, photosynthesis, photosystem ii, protein crystallography, proteins, protons, renewable energy, resolution, slac, solar energy, synchrotron radiation, terabytes of data, uwe bergmann, vittal yachandra, water, xray diffraction, xrays

Berkeley Lab and SLAC Researchers Study Key Protein Complex Crucial to Photosynthesis

Future prospects for clean, green, renewable energy may hinge upon our ability to mimic and improve upon photosynthesis – the process by which green plants, algae and some bacteria convert solar energy into electrochemical energy. An artificial version of photosynthesis, for example, could use sunlight to produce liquid fuels from nothing more than carbon dioxide and water. First, however, scientists need a better understanding of how a large complex of proteins, called photosystem II, is able to split water molecules into oxygen, electrons and hydrogen ions (protons). A new road to reaching this understanding has now been opened by an international team of researchers, led by scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory.

Using ultrafast, intensely bright pulses of X-rays from SLAC’s Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS), the research team produced the first ever images at room temperature of microcrystals of the photosystem II complex. Previous imaging studies, using X-rays generated via synchrotron radiation sources, required cryogenic freezing, which alters the samples. Also, to catalyze its reactions, photosystem II relies upon an enzyme that contains a manganese-calcium cluster that is highly sensitive to radiation. With the high-intensity femtosecond X-ray pulses of the LCLS, the research team was able to record intact images of these clusters before the radiation destroyed them. (more…)

The Promise of Ion Beam Cancer Therapy

By Guest PostOctober 23, 20101 commentHealth, Scienceatoms, beams of ions, berkeley lab, bragg peak, cancer, carbon, cyclotron, ernest lawrence, gamma rays, heavy ion linear accelerator, heidelberg ion beam therapy center, hilac, hit, hydrogen ions, ion-beam therapy, john lawrence, neon, protons, robert wilson, therapy, x-rays

For certain kinds of cancer, the most effective therapy does not use x-rays or gamma rays but beams of ions, the electrically charged cores of atoms, including hydrogen ions (protons) and heavier ions such as carbon and neon.

About the image: Beams of heavy ions can target hard-to-reach tumors with great accuracy and with minimal damage to surrounding tissues. Heidelberg Ion-Beam Therapy Center. Image credit: Berkeley Lab (more…)

Tag Archives: hydrogen ions

Hydrogen Fuel from Sunlight

Mug Handles Could Help Hot Plasma Give Lower-Cost, Controllable Fusion Energy

A New Way of Looking at Photosystem II

The Promise of Ion Beam Cancer Therapy