US Navy Develops Technology to Turn Seawater Into Fuel

US Navy scientists have developed a radical new technique to convert seawater into jet fuel.

After decades of experiments, researchers at the US Naval Research Laboratory's (NRL) Materials Science and Technology Division have found a way to extract carbon dioxide and hydrogen from the ocean and convert the mixture into liquid hydrocarbon fuel.

The breakthrough means that warships could have an unlimited supply of fuel which could be replenished while at sea. It would also reduce dependence on the world's dwindling supplies of oil.

Although practical, affordable applications of the technology are several years away, it has been hailed as a "game-changer" that could produce a replacement fuel at a cost of $3 (£1.79) to $6 per gallon within a decade.

Heather Willauer, a research chemist at the NRL, said: "This is the first time technology of this nature has been demonstrated with the potential for transition from the laboratory to full-scale commercial implementation."

Copyright, IB Times, 2014.