Metallic Hydrogen Could Revolutionize Rocket Fuel
Metallic hydrogen is a very complicated and synthesised form of hydrogen capable of conducting electricity even at very low temperatures. After years and years of research and experiments, Scientists have finally synthesised it in lab. According to Isaac Silvera, a physicist at Harvard University "we have never encountered it because it has never existed on Earth before." Also he also talked about why it has never existed naturally? It is due the inappropriate conditions (including temperature, humidity, pressure and more) in the universe.
In order to create electrically conductive hydrogen scientists squeezed hydrogen between two ultra pure diamonds under very very high pressure. Theoretically it is possible to use metallic hydrogen as an ultralight and very powerful rocket fuel.
Great Applications
As the Metallic Hydrogen is pretty new material so scientists don’t exactly know its applications but is under intensive research and sitting under very high pressure. According to Silvera if diamonds are put to very high pressure (Millions of Atmosphere) and again the pressure is remove the diamond breaks. Scientists don’t know if the Metallic Hydrogen would be stable if the pressure is removed. If Metallic Hydrogen found stable even at room temperature then it could revolutionise our world completely specially in terms of efficiency.
Metallic Hydrogen could be used as superconductor if it is found stable at room temperatures. Also, It would be really helpful in producing Magnetic levitating trains or MRI machines. According to Silvera it will be the most powerful rocket fuel that man knows and it could completely change things around rocket science completely. It would be nearly 10x times lighter than the conventional rocket fuel. There is still research going on to learn about whether the material is stable at room temperatures. We will know about it soon!
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They need to figure out how to get it to exist outside of that super high pressure environment first. It seems very energetically expensive to get to form and store at the moment.
For now it is difficult to say but for future scientists will find a way.
I was actually thinking the same. The benefit-cost analysis does not seem very favorable.