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Hydrogen has an important role to play in a cleaner energy future. Currently, most hydrogen is made by converting methane. But the most common processes to do this are energy intensive and generate significant amounts of CO2.
Methane pyrolysis is a potentially cleaner way to turn methane into hydrogen, but the effectiveness of this approach ultimately depends on 1) the choice of catalyst used to make the process possible, and 2) how clean and efficiently one can make that catalyst.
A team of researchers from Lithuania and Latvia have found an important piece to this sequential puzzle. They centered their work on catalyst made from nickel and iron, and found that it does indeed have promise as a more efficient and effective way to get hydrogen from methane.
And their experiments showed that technique called "Magnetron Sputtering" can be a cleaner way to make a more durable and effective version of that catalyst.
"Compared to conventional catalyst fabrication techniques, magnetron sputtering offers a scalable, low-waste, and highly tuneable method, enhancing both catalytic activity and thermal stability.
These findings establish Fe-Ni catalysts prepared via magnetron sputtering as a promising route for sustainable and industrially scalable turquoise hydrogen production. However, comprehensive experimental investigations are required to assess catalyst reusability and long-term performance." - excerpt from the paper as published in Green Chemisrty Letters & Reviews
The researchers involved in this study are from these two institutions:
- The Lithuanian Energy Institute's Center for Hydrogen Energy Technologies
- The University of Latvia's Institute of Solid State Physics
Read their paper in the journal Green Chemistry Letters & Reviews. The paper is titled "Design and evaluation of Fe-Ni nanostructured catalysts via magnetron sputtering for CO₂-free hydrogen production."
Editor's note: "Magnetron Sputtering" has to be the best phrase I've heard in some time. I claim dibs on it as a future band name...
