• The main threats to human health from heavy metals are associated with exposure to lead, cadmium, mercury and arsenic.
• Heavy metal pollution is a long time issues.
• Though there are several reports for detection of mercury, but a fruitful process which can remove and utilize the contaminant is yet to be developed.
• Hydrogen is one of two natural elements that combine to make water. It has a very high calorific value and hence it is a good energy carrier/ fuel. It is useful as an energy source in fuel cells and batteries.
• While hydrogen is a clean fuel, the main challenges associated with its application have to do with difficulty in material storage and transportation, safety, low rate, etc.

Hence there is a need to develop a new method to overcome above mentioned problems, which is disclosed in the present patent.

The present patent discloses a process for generating hydrogen from mercury containing waste water via in situ synthesis of a hydrolytic amalgam, which does not undergo passivation by alumina layer on its surface like other similar systems. The method comprising the steps of:

• Providing aluminium salt to the water to remove mercury from the water wherein aluminium (Al) salt reacts with mercury in the water to form Al amalgam (nano or microaluminium amalgam);
• Producing hydrogen gas from the water by reacting the water with aluminum amalgam through borohydride addition, wherein the aluminium amalgam reacts with the water to produce the hydrogen gas;
• Remove Hg from water in granular form.