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Harvesting Hydrogen Fuel from Plants Gets Cheaper

A major roadblock to widespread use of hydrogen-powered electric vehicles, which emit water vapor as a by-product and could cut greenhouse gas emissions substantially, is the cost and trouble associated with producing a suitable supply of hydrogen. Last year scientists reported having developed a technique to harness the fuel from biomass, but the catalyst required for the reaction was too expensive to be commercially viable. The same researchers announce today in the journal Science that they have discovered a different catalyst that works just as well--at a fraction of the cost.