We agree to the fact that production of environmentally safe hydrogen fuel, even its storage, is an expensive affair. However, by utilizing molybdenum catalyst and allowing it to react with seawater could bring down the cost for sure. The University of California, Berkeley, scientists led by Jeffrey Long, have found a molybdenum-oxo complex that behaves as bulk magnet to split water to generate hydrogen gas. They are also hopeful of coupling the system to solar-generated electricity to make it more effective.
Though the researchers conducted their researches on seawater alone, the catalyst effectively reacts with pure water too. It does not ask for any additives, organic acids or solvents through the whole process that can go beyond a couple of days. The compound is definitely more stable than the nickel and iron compounds used previously. Even with these advantages, the compound is slower than the natural hydrogenases. Therefore, it needs a higher electric voltage to speed the reaction.
Via: PhysOrg