According to many scientists, the proposed ‘hydrogen economy’, in which hydrogen is to become the most important carrier of sustainably generated energy, is an inevitable development. Unfortunately, the use of hydrogen entails certain risks, because it is flammable and difficult to detect. The research that the scientists described in their publication in Nature Communications focuses on the combination of the chemical elements yttrium and zirconium, two so-called ‘transition metals’. The principle behind the new sensor is that the atoms making up the metal grid structure have to make room for the uptake of hydrogen, explains Utrecht chemistry researcher and NEF Fellow Peter Ngene, lead author of the publication. Read more
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