Scientists managed to significantly boost the production of green hydrogen using sound waves in a clean energy breakthrough.

The “exciting” study combined high-frequency sound waves with less expensive green hydrogen production techniques to get 14 times more output.

The development could have important implications as the world tries to wean itself off fossil fuels and transition to cleaner energy sources, the research team, led by Amgad Rezk, a lecturer in the School of Engineering at RMIT University, Melbourne, said…

The problem with carrying out electrolysis using an electrolyte solution with a neutral or near-neutral pH is that this usually results in hydrogen production levels that are much lower than with a very acidic or alkaline solution.

In an attempt to address this challenge, Rezk and his colleagues designed a setup comprising a standard electrochemical cell—the apparatus used in electrolysis—incorporated with a device that emitted high-frequency sound waves.