When the research was published, solar energy and alternative fuel researchers labeled it a breakthrough. A German scientist called it "probably the most important single discovery of the century."

Utah's high-desert terrain makes solar an ideal energy source, and the commercial availability — not to mention viability — is still a ways off, Nocera said.

The energy loss is still a focus of truly refining the technique of taking electricity to hydrogen/oxygen and back to electricity again. Other storage methods such as lithium-ion batteries have storage/energy conversion ratios that make them about 80 percent efficient.

They're efficient but don't last very long, and they wear out fast, Nocera points out. The hydrogen method offers virtually unlimited storage capacity, and the process described by Nocera is "self-healing" with minimum replacement and maintenance costs.

Also, research into using hydrogen to carry energy rather than electricity, refueling is as fast as filling up your tank with gasoline. Batteries in hybrid cars must be plugged in for several hours or must by swapped with charged replacements.

Nocera's lecture, "Powering the Planet by Artificial Photosynthesis" is scheduled Wednesday at 4 p.m. in Eccles Science Learning Center, Room 046 at USU.

"Dr. Nocera is a pioneer in our understanding of mechanisms of energy conversion in biology and chemistry," said USU chemistry professor Lance Seefeldt, seminar host. He's a frequent scientific contributor to network, cable and public television programs, including NOVA, ABC's "Nightline" and Discovery Channel News. "We're very fortunate to have a scientist of his caliber on campus."

If you go . . .

What: Daniel Nocera's lecture, Powering the Planet by Artificial Photosynthesis

When: Wednesday, 4 p.m.

Where: USU's Eccles Science Learning Center, Room 046

---

E-mail: jthalman@desnews.com