Electricity from water without using any power or chemicals

Team of scientists led by Dr. R.K. Kotnala from Delhi’s National Physical Laboratory (NPL) developed a novel way using of producing electricity from water hydroelectric cell at room temperature without using any power or chemicals.Dr. R.K. Kotnala and team used nanoporous magnesium ferrite to split water into hydronium (H3O) and hydroxide (OH) ions and used silver and zinc as electrodes to make a cell that produces electricity.To further enhance the activity of magnesium ferrite, about 20% of magnesium is replaced with lithium. The substitution of lithium at magnesium site increases the sensitivity of magnesium ferrite. This is helpful in dissociating water at room temperature as the electrons get trapped in the oxygen deficient sites.