Chinese scientists have discovered naturally occurring hydrogen gas trapped inside ophiolite rocks on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau, offering new clues for locating future clean energy sources.

Large, onshore ophiolite formations spread across the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau make the region a particularly promising target for research and early exploration, researchers from the Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences stated on Friday.

The study identified minerals from serpentinization – a rock–water reaction that produces natural hydrogen, which is considered a low-cost, zero-carbon energy source.  

This indicates active or past hydrogen generation beneath the plateau, helping to explain its underground formation and upward migration, researchers said.