Weird Crystal Can Absorb All The Oxygen In A Room -- And Then Release It Later

I think i have already covered this but it is important as it opens the door to long lasting operations in the deep sea as well as space operations.  Both areas have been sharply constrained by simple time limitations.  Now we can anticipate a device that allows a helium carrier with a CO2 scavenging system tied to this system all operating for long hours.


Particularly it allows sub-sea bases to become practical.  Then high pressure is no longer an issue.  In this way it becomes possible to engage in extensive sub-sea construction and to have useful working spaces.


It also allows the creation of a long lived space suit good for days or more.  That will make a huge difference.

Weird Crystal Can Absorb All The Oxygen In A Room -- And Then Release It Later          This could potentially make fuel cells, space travel, and scuba diving a lot more efficient.

By

Sarah Fecht

Posted 10.01.2014 at 5:15 pm

 http://www.feedspot.com/#feed/f_15191/article/1522843316?dd=26615047


Researchers from the University of Southern Denmark say they’ve invented a crystal that pulls oxygen out of the air and even water. Apparently, just a spoonful of the stuff can suck up all the oxygen in a room.

The Oxygen-Absorbing Material. 

U. of Southern Denmark 

The crystal is a salt made from cobalt*, and it appears to be capable of holding oxygen at a concentration that is 160 times higher than the air we breathe. The paper notes that "an excess" of the substance would bind up to 99 percent of the oxygen in a room.   But what’s more remarkable is that the crystal can later release the oxygen when exposed to heat or low-oxygen conditions. In a press release, study author Christine McKenzie likens it to the hemoglobin in our blood, which uses iron to bind and release oxygen in the human body.

If the substance lives up to its promises, it could have a lot of really cool applications—for example, feeding high concentrations of oxygen into hydrogen fuel cells, and lightening the load for lung patients who have to lug around heavy oxygen supplies. Also, scuba divers could potentially leave their tanks at home, says McKenzie. “A few grains contain enough oxygen for one breath, and as the material can absorb oxygen from the water around the diver and supply the diver with it, the diver will not need to bring more than these few grains."

The study was published in Chemical Science.

*If you must know, the chemical name of the salt is written out as [{(bpbp)Co₂^II(NO₃)}₂(NH₂bdc)](NO₃)₂ * 2H₂O, where “bpbp” stands for 2,6-bis(N,N-bis(2-pyridylmethyl)-aminomethyl)-4-tert-butylphenolato, and “NH₂bdc^2” stands for 2-amino-1,4-benzenedicarboxylato). Don’t ask us how to pronounce all that.