Microorganisms can create electricity from wastewater: Study
bioelectronics increasing the ability of common E. coli bacteria to generate energy.
The study was published in the journal Joule.
Professor Ardemis Boghossian of EPFL stated that «we engineered E. coli bacteria, the most extensively studied microbe, to generate electricity.»
«Although there are rare bacteria that can generate electricity on their own, they require a specific chemical combination to do so.
We have been able to create power in a number of scenarios, including ones involving wastewater because E. coli can thrive on a range of substrates.»
The paper described a revolutionary strategy that has the potential to revolutionise both waste management and energy production.
E. coli bacteria, which are commonly used in biological research, have been used to generate electricity via a mechanism known as extracellular electron transfer (EET).
EPFL researchers altered E. coli bacteria to have increased EET, resulting in highly efficient «electric microbes.»
Unlike prior approaches, which required specific chemicals to generate energy, the bioengineered E. coli can generate electricity while metabolising a wide range of organic substrates.
One of the study's significant advances is the development of a complete EET pathway within E.
coli, which has never been done previously. The researchers successfully developed an optimised pathway that bridges the cell's inner and outer membranes by merging components from Shewanella oneidensis MR-1, a bacteria known for producing electricity.
When compared to conventional procedures, this innovative pathway outperformed earlier partial approaches, resulting in a threefold increase in electrical current generation.
Importantly, the modified E. coli performed admirably in a variety
