Electric vehicles could be powered by Hydrogen harvested from sewage

· Hydrogen is valuable as it is a renewable source, and could be sold to the chemicals and plastics industry or used in hydrogen fuel cells for energy storage or electric vehicles. The ability to take hydrogen from waste water provides a new economic and environmental opportunity, however until now it has been incredibly expensive to suffice · Using a recycled carbon fibre mat, researchers from WMG, University of Warwick, have been able to produce Hydrogen from wastewater for Severn Trent Wastewater treatment is vital to remove pathogens, but is incredibly energy intensive. The ability to treat it more sustainably is a challenge researchers from WMG, University of Warwick have been able to achieve, using recycled carbon fibre mats to produce hydrogen from waste water. Treating wastewater is a vital process, as it removes pathogens and protects the environment, however this comes at its own environmental cost, as it is highly energy intensive, using around 3% of energy use in the UK - the equivalent to 13 billion kilowatt hours. The water and waste company Severn Trent set researchers from WMG, University of Warwick, the challenge of finding a more energy efficient way to treat wastewater, with the team successfully building on research into Microbial Electrolysis Cells. Microbial Electrolysis Cells involves using electromagnetic microorganisms to break down organic pollutants in waste water, producing clean water and hydrogen gas. The ability to produce Hydrogen gas is valuable in itself as it can be sold to chemical and plastics industry, or for use in hydrogen fuel cells for energy storage or electric vehicles.