Science in the Triangle

Remember cold fusion? Most scientists believe the dream of generating an abundance of cheap energy by fusing two atomic nuclei at room temperature is dead after a 1989 tabletop experiment couldn’t be repeated and its results were questioned.

Tom Meyer, a chemistry professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, is one of them.

Talking to a group of science communicators Thursday in Research Triangle Park, Meyer (photo at left) said he didn’t think cold fusion was possible. But he pointed out that other innovate ways to generate tomorrow’s energy, including fuels made from sunlight, geothermal energy and hydrogen/oxigen fuel cells have their own challenges.

“A lot of this is based on promises,” Meyer said in his presentation at Sigma Xi, an international research society that has its administrative offices in RTP. “This is high-risk, high-reward research.”

Meyer heads the UNC solar fuels research center, established this year with the help of a $17.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy. About 20 scientists from UNC, the University of Florida and N.C. State, N.C. Central and Duke universities work at the center to convert solar energy into chemical fuels.

As a former associate laboratory director at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, Meyer is also familiar with nuclear energy, including the pursuit of cold fusion. He used to pay for cold fusion experiments, he said.

Scientists across the U.S. have tried their hands at alternative energy sources for decades. But in 2006, petroleum remained the primary source for energy in the U.S., according to figures by the National Academy of Science. Add gas and coal to the oil, and hydrocarbons - the source of global warming when burned - represent nearly 85 percent of the U.S. sources of energy.

So are there other, more environmentally friendly energy sources available, especially considering that energy consumption is projected to rise nearly tenfold over the course of the century?

Meyer offered suggestions and caveats:

• The U.S. Department of Energy is considering reviving a research program to generate synthetic fuel from coal gasification. The U.S. has the largest coal deposits of any country, but funding for the coal gasification program was stopped last year with about $900 million in cost overrruns.
• Research to generate electricity with fuel cells that combine hydrogen and oxygen is significantly hampered by problems with fuel cell parts and storage.
• Energy from renewable sources, such as wind and biomass, cannot be made in sufficient quantities to replace hydrocarbon fuels.
• Organic photovoltaics, which uses materials similar to Saran wrap to turn sunlight into electricity, is inexpensive. The materials are thin and could easily be turned into shingles and paint, but scientists continue to struggle with controlling and speeding up the transformation.
• Energy from sunlight also raises questions about storage, because on average useful sunlight is only available six hours per day. Producing chemicals through arteficial photosynthesis and then burning the chemicals is one possible solution, because chemicals are easier to store than electricity.

To focus research activities, a public debate similar to the one on health care is needed, Meyer said. But to fulfill the world’s rising energy demands, “you’re going to have many energy sources, use them all,” he said.

And don’t ask him about the cost of new energy sources and how they will compete with cheaper hydrocarbon fuels.

“Markets do not work, the new technologies won’t pay off for years,” he said. But “if you do not invest (in them) know, you’re going to buy everything in China in 10 years.”

For podcasts of the Sigma Xi speaker series go here.