Claire Clutterham (Sturt, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Last night, the Prime Minister's Prizes for Science awards were held in the great hall of Parliament House. Professor Yao Zheng, a resident of my electorate of Sturt and a professor at the University of Adelaide, won the Malcolm McIntosh Prize for Physical Scientist of the Year for his work in creating a method to generate ultra-pure hydrogen directly from untreated seawater via electrolysis. In his acceptance speech, Professor Zheng noted both the beauty and abundance of two of Australia's greatest natural resources—sunlight and seawater—and, in doing so, asked, 'If our natural resources are abundant and available, then why not harness their power for the purposes of green energy?'

The groundbreaking research and work carried out by Professor Zheng and his team has eliminated the need for costly de-ionised water. Professor Zheng's innovative technology offers a practical solution for clean energy production in parallel with reducing freshwater consumption, which is particularly vital for a water-scarce region like Australia. His high-performance electrocatalysts enable efficient and robust hydrogen generation. He achieved this by uniting chemical reaction kinetics with materials chemistry.

Professor Zheng is an example of what can happen when we listen to and rely on the science. I offer my heartfelt congratulations to Professor Zheng.

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