Thats changed, thanks to the work of engineers at Northwestern University.
But the why of it has remained elusive, the engineers wrote in their study.
In real time, they saw tiny water bubbles forming on the palladiums surface.
The square is a bubble of water, emerging from a tiny piece of palladium.© Northwestern University
We think it might be the smallest bubble ever formed that has been viewed directly, Liu said.
Its not what we were expecting.
Luckily, we were recording it, so we could prove to other people that we werent crazy.
Using an electron microscope, tiny bubbles of water could be seen forming on a piece of palladium. © Northwestern University
Our process is analogous, except we bypass the need for fire and other extreme conditions, he added.
We simply mixed palladium and gases together.
To confirm they were observing water, they measured the energy lost from electron scattering during the process.
The result was identical to whats found in the oxygen-bonding process of water.
Palladium might seem expensive, but its recyclable, Liu said.
Our process doesnt consume it.
The only thing consumed is gas, and hydrogen is the most abundant gas in the universe.
After the reaction, we can reuse the palladium platform over and over.
Thats even better news for Matt Damon, who famously has a bad habit of gettingstuckon inhospitable planets.
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