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The Honolulu Advertiser
Updated at 7:57 p.m., Saturday, October 18, 2008

University of Hawaii research team making waves in solar chemistry

By Dave Dondoneau
Advertiser Staff Writer

Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

University of Hawaiçi chemistry professor Robert Liu, left, and postdoctoral researcher Zhao Yao-Peng show off their "kickboard reactor" at Kühiö Beach.

Lang-Ying Yang photo

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It sounds too good to be true — working while bodyboarding. But a University of Hawai'i researcher and a small team of photochemistry scientists and volunteer boogie boarders has been riding the waves for months while conducting solar chemistry research.

Along the way, they've made some waves of their own, getting solar chemistry to work for the first time by using the ocean as a coolant. The experiment also led to the discovery of variants of Vitamin A that can be used in perfumes, according to head researcher and UH chemistry professor Robert Liu.

The key to the research is a customized boogie board that carries chemicals in test tubes that are heated by the sun and cooled by the ocean as riders catch waves.

For more on this story, see tomorrow's Honolulu Advertiser.

Reach Dave Dondoneau at ddondoneau@honoluluadvertiser.com.