Scientists have discovered a bacterial enzyme that converts hydrogen into electricity, and they think it could be used to create a new, clean source of energy literally from thin air. The enzyme, which has been named Huc, is used by the bacterium Mycobacterium smegmatis to draw energy from atmospheric hydrogen, enabling it to survive in extreme, nutrient-poor environments. Now, by extracting and studying the enzyme, researchers say they have found a new energy source that could be used to power a range of small portable electrical devices.“We imagine that a Huc-containing power source could power a range of small portable devices using air, including biometric sensors, environmental monitors, digital clocks and calculators or simple computers,” said Rhys Grinter, a microbiologist at Monash University in Australia. “When you provide Huc with…
