Minerals Called Perovskites May Hold the Key to New Energy
Crystalline minerals called perovskites could be the key to new, innovative electronics and energy technologies and could play a major role in a carbon-free energy future, according to researchers at Idaho National Laboratory.
What to know:
Perovskites are crystalline minerals that occur naturally and can be made in a laboratory. They come in a variety of chemical arrangements, all of which have a similar chemical formula. Properties and flexibility can vary widely.
Researchers at Idaho National Laboratory are using perovskites to try to convert fuel into electricity or produce valuable chemicals, such as ethylene, hydrogen, or ammonia.
Used for decades in technologies such as sensors and lasers, they are now being tested for constructing protonic ceramic electrochemical cells (PCECs), which are similar to batteries. They can generate electricity from a chemical reaction or power a chemical reaction.
PCECs have been able to convert excess electricity and water into hydrogen and can operate in reverse to convert hydrogen into electricity that could eventually be used for grid-scale electricity storage.
Perovskites are inexpensive and can help reduce costs in all areas of their diverse applications while maintaining the same or similar reaction activity.
This is a summary of the article, “Minerals Called Perovskites Open New Avenues of Energy Research,” published by the Idaho National Laboratory on May 9, 2022. The full article can be found on inl.gov.
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