https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-03-09/monash-university-air-electricity-enzyme-soil/102071786 Skip to main content ABC News Homepage Search Loading More from ABC More from ABC Close menuABC * ABC Home * News * Local * listen * iview * Everyday * More Editorial Policies Read our editorial guiding principles * Accessibility * Help * Contact Us * About the ABC * Privacy Policy * Terms of Use * (c) 2023 ABC * * * * * Just In * Watch Live * Voice Referendum * Politics * World * Business * Analysis * Sport * Science * Health * Arts * Fact Check * Coronavirus * Other News HomeABC News Homepage Melbourne scientists find enzyme that can make electricity out of tiny amounts of hydrogen Share News Ticker Live blog Follow live as the Victorian Liberal Party votes on whether to expel MP Moira Deeming Live blog Catch up with The Loop, your quick wrap of this morning's news 1 / of 2 Get breaking news alerts directly to your phone with our app Melbourne scientists find enzyme that can make electricity out of tiny amounts of hydrogen By Andi Yu Posted Thu 9 Mar 2023 at 5:09amThursday 9 Mar 2023 at 5:09amThu 9 Mar 2023 at 5:09am Young man holds up conical flask in a science lab Dr Rhys Grinter is the co-lead researcher on a Monash University study.(Supplied) Help keep family & friends informed by sharing this article abc.net.au/news/monash-university-air-electricity-enzyme-soil/ 102071786 Link copied Copy linkShare Scientists have isolated an enzyme from soil bacteria that can convert air into electricity, which they say could be developed into a renewable power source for small devices. Key points: * The research has been published in the journal Nature * The scientists say a "natural battery" made of an enzyme that uses hydrogen in the air could be a power source for devices * A hydrogen energy expert says the way the research has been advertised is "over excited" The Monash University research, published in the peer-reviewed journal Nature, shows that the enzyme called "Huc" can turn tiny amounts of hydrogen present in the air into an electrical current. An enzyme is a type of protein that can speed up chemical reaction in cells. Huc is a "natural battery", the scientists said, and while their research is in its very early stages, their discovery has the potential to be a low-cost power source for small objects. "We've shown that when we isolate [Huc] in the lab we can put that into an electrical circuit and it produces electricity," co-lead researcher Rhys Grinter said. Loading... Only very small devices could be powered this way, because there are such low levels of hydrogen in the air -- just 0.00005 per cent, he said. Larger objects would need an external source of hydrogen to add more electrical power. "We're looking at very small things like a biometric monitor or an environmental sensor that would need sustained levels of power," Dr Grinter said. "However if you give our enzyme more hydrogen, it will make more power. "In something like a fuel cell it could potentially produce enough power to power a wristwatch or a smartphone." "The dream", Dr Grinter said, would be to develop a power source that doesn't require much to keep it going and "basically passively powers itself from air". He said the plan was to scale up production of the enzyme and then work with engineers to design devices powered by the enzyme's use of air. Young man in a university science lab with lots of bottles and chemicals around him The Monash University study has been published in the peer-reviewed journal Nature.(Supplied) Powering small devices a 'big reach', hydrogen energy expert says Macquarie University's Robert Willows, who owns a start-up hydrogen energy company, said Monash researchers had made a significant finding in getting an enzyme to create electricity with hydrogen. But he said the idea of generating power from thin air was "over excited". "That's really a big reach," the hydrogen energy expert said. Middle aged man smiling Professor Robert Willows says the new research is significant but claims of small devices running off "thin air" are not realistic. (ABC News: Supplied) "They're proposing it could be used to generate electricity from air. That's a very long bow to draw," he said. "There's just not enough hydrogen present in air to be useful to make electricity. "For something that has extraordinarily small current requirements, that might be feasible, but for something like a wristwatch ... that's never going to work." The main significance of the scientific findings, which Professor Willows fully supports, is that the scientists managed to generate electricity in the presence of oxygen. Usually bacteria that make hydrogen are too sensitive to oxygen. "This work [gives an] idea of how to make these enzymes insensitive to oxygen," he said. Technology could revolutionise daily life Director of future lower-energy electronics technologies at Monash University, Michael Fuhrer, who was not involved in the enzyme research, said a low-cost energy source for smart devices could be game changing. "Think about a sensor that's stuck to the side of your milk jug in your fridge but tells Alexa -- or any smart device -- that your milk has gone off and that you need to buy another one when you go to the grocery store," Professor Fuhrer said. "If you could manufacture that for 5 cents then it's probably worthwhile. "This idea is sometimes called the internet of things -- that we want everything to be connected to the internet." Professor Fuhrer said the latest research was new to him, but that extracting very small amounts of energy from the environment was an active area of research. "It's a first step and it sounds exciting." Posted 9 Mar 20239 Mar 2023Thu 9 Mar 2023 at 5:09am Share * Copy link * Facebook * Twitter * More on: * Academic Research * Energy * Monash University Top Stories * Jacob will get an extra $31 a fortnight to put towards his rent. 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