Iowa startup exceeds 10% solar-to-hydrogen efficiency with 100 cm² module

A startup based in Iowa, SunHydrogen, has hit a new efficiency mark for turning sunlight directly into hydrogen. Its small test panel, about 100 square centimeters, converted more than 10% of solar energy into hydrogen during lab testing with Australia's Sparc Hydrogen. That follows an earlier result of 10.8% at Honda's research facility in Japan, where the two companies have been developing the technology together.

The system works differently from rooftop solar panels. Instead of generating electricity to send to an outlet or battery, it uses sunlight to split water directly into hydrogen and oxygen, skipping the separate electrolyzer equipment that usually does that job. This could eventually make hydrogen production simpler and cheaper, though the technology is still in the testing phase, not on the market.

SunHydrogen also reported nearly 9% efficiency on a much larger test module, sized similarly to a standard solar panel, during outdoor testing. The company plans further testing with Sparc Hydrogen over the next two years, including trials under concentrated sunlight in South Australia, aiming eventually at a licensing or supply deal. It is also working with Honda and other manufacturing partners to push efficiency toward 15% in future versions.

None of this is a product homeowners can buy or install. It is early-stage research into an alternative way to produce hydrogen fuel using sunlight, with no residential application announced yet.