Explore the innovative process of microbial electrosynthesis, where microorganisms use electricity to convert CO2 into valuable chemicals and fuels, offering a sustainable solution for carbon capture and utilization.

Microbial electrosynthesis (MES) is a process in which microorganisms use electricity to convert carbon dioxide (CO2) into useful chemicals or fuels. MES provides a novel route for the generation of valuable products from things like water and wastewater. This process combines multiple disciplines, from microbiology to electrochemistry and renewable energy.

This emerging technology is being used as a CO2 sequestration method to address climate change. MES is able to convert CO2 from pollution or waste into various carbon compounds.

Microbial biosensors are analytical devices that use microorganisms, such as bacteria or yeast, to detect specific substances, or analytes, in an environment. These sensors combine the biological recognition ability of microbes with a transducer that converts the microbial response into a measurable signal.

Key components of the sensors include:

The sensors are used across a variety of industries to detect pollutants. They are typically used for environmental monitoring for the detection of pollutants like heavy metals, pesticides or hydrocarbons in the soil or water. The sensors can also monitor biological oxygen demand (BOD) in wastewater.

Other applications include:

A microbial electrochemical system uses microorganisms to convert the chemical energy stored in biodegradable materials to direct electric current and chemicals. The systems are used to exploit the natural metabolic processes of electroactive microbes to generate electricity, drive chemical reactions or treat waste.