Electron Mediation and Photocurrent Enhancement in Dunalliela salina Driven Bio-Photo Electrochemical Cells

In recent years, finding alternatives for fossil fuels has become a major concern. One promising solution is microorganism-based bio-photo electrochemical cells (BPECs) that utilize photosynthetic solar energy conversion as an energy source while absorbing CO2 from the atmosphere. It was previously...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Catalysts 2021-10, Vol.11 (10), p.1220
Main Authors: Shlosberg, Yaniv, Tóth, Tünde N., Eichenbaum, Benjamin, Keysar, Lee, Schuster, Gadi, Adir, Noam
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Algae
Alternative fuels
Bacteria
Catalysts
Chemical reactions
Chloroplasts
Cyanobacteria
Electrochemical cells
Electrodes
Electrolytes
Electron transfer
Electrons
Fossil fuels
Mediators
Membranes
Microorganisms
Photoelectric effect
Photoelectric emission
Photosynthesis
Salinity
Solar energy conversion
Synergistic effect
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Summary:In recent years, finding alternatives for fossil fuels has become a major concern. One promising solution is microorganism-based bio-photo electrochemical cells (BPECs) that utilize photosynthetic solar energy conversion as an energy source while absorbing CO2 from the atmosphere. It was previously reported that in cyanobacterial-based BPECs, the major endogenous electron mediator that can transfer electrons from the thylakoid membrane photosynthetic complexes and external anodes is NADPH. However, the question of whether the same electron transfer mechanism is also valid for live eukaryotic microalgae, in which NADPH must cross both the chloroplast outer membrane and the cell wall to be secreted from the cell has remained elusive. In this work, we show that NADPH is also the major endogenous electron mediator in the microalgae Dunalliela salina (Ds). We show that the ability of Ds to tolerate high salinity enables the production of a photocurrent that is 5–6 times greater than previously reported for freshwater cyanobacterial-based BPECs in the presence or absence of exogenous electron mediators. Additionally, we show that the electron mediator Vitamin B1 can also function as an electron mediator enhancing photocurrent production. Finally, we show that the addition of both FeCN and NADP+ to Ds has a synergistic effect enhancing the photocurrent beyond the effect of adding each mediator separately.
ISSN:2073-4344
2073-4344
DOI:10.3390/catal11101220