In 2008 MIT chemist Daniel Nocera concocted a very simple, very cheap, robust, self-healing and non-toxic catalyst made from cobalt and phosphate that can split water into hydrogen and oxygen.

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By adding cobalt and phosphates to water and passing a mild current through the solution with a glass electrode, Matthew Kanan and Daniel Nocera of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) were able to break water apart and force oxygen to bubble to the surface.

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