Iranian Researchers Making Efforts to Produce Low-Cost Fresh Water with Artificial Leaves

“The expertise of our team is photonanobiocatalysts, and we are seeking to produce artificial leaves which is very important for water splitting, and pure hydrogen energy can be produced through this method without any waste,” said Mohammad Hossein Siyadati, a member of the Faculty of Engineering and Materials Science of Khajeh Nasir Toosi University.

“Also, if we don't want to separate hydrogen and oxygen and direct them to another tank, half an hour later they will combine and produce fresh water, and since the country is in the North and South connected to vast water resources, we can produce fresh water abundantly and cheaply,” he added.

“As our knowledge improves, we can increase the efficiency of these photobiocatalysts, which, of course, cannot be achieved with normal techniques, but we should identify the synchrotron, the active points of the catalyst, as best as we can to produce better catalysts with higher efficiency and finally, artificial leaves with better quality,” Siyadati said.

Tests of the new artificial leaves showed that they can split water into hydrogen and oxygen, or reduce CO2 to syngas.

While additional improvements will need to be made before they are ready for commercial applications, the researchers say this development opens whole new avenues in their work.

Artificial leaves could substantially lower the cost of sustainable fuel production, but since they’re both heavy and fragile, they’re difficult to produce at scale and transport.

4155/v