Platinum could soon be used as a key component in producing energy from sugar as part of the development of new potential fuels.

Researchers at Sandia laboratories say that they may have devised a new method for producing energy that relies on the natural energy potential of glucose.

Lead researcher Stanley Kravitz has begun to apply for patents governing the process, and are encouraged by their initial findings, although he acknowledges that the solution could be complex.

"The problem with hydrogen is that it isn't just found in the air or lying around," Kravitz told the New York Times.

"You have do something quite energy-intensive to break apart some molecule in order to get hydrogen. That's the Catch-22."

To make this break happen Kravitz has suggested using genetic engineering to adapt enzymes, but also flagged up an alternative nonbiological approach, "using metals like platinum to liberate electrons".

These glucose fuel cells would require only small amounts of energy and could offer a readily available source of alternative energy.