Madrid. researchers fabricated skyscraper microscopic for communities of bacteria in order to help them generate electricity with only sunlight and water.
As published in Nature Materials, Cambridge University experts used 3D printing to create networks of high-rise nanohouses in which sun-loving bacteria could grow rapidly. Then, they extracted the residual electrons from the microorganisms, left over from photosynthesis, useful for powering small electronic devices.
Other research teams have extracted energy from photosynthetic bacteria, but the Cambridge team found that if they are given the right home, the amount of energy increases by more than an order of magnitude. The method is competitive with traditional renewable bioenergy generation processes and has already achieved solar conversion efficiencies that can exceed many current systems.
Their results open new avenues in bioenergy generation and suggest that “biohybrid” sources of energy produced by the Sun could be an important component in the energy mix with zero carbon emissions.
Current renewable technologies, such as solar cells, are far superior to fossil fuels in terms of carbon emissions, but they also have limitations, such as reliance on mining and agriculture, recycling issues, and land use. , leading to loss of biodiversity.
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