UEA Scientists Claim That Bacteria Could Be Used For Producing Electricity

The demand for electricity for domestic and industrial purposes is increasing at an exponential rate. However, the non renewable energy resources are on the verge of depletion. Also, the conventional energy resources are carbon emitting sources that lead to global warming. As a result, the researchers in the power sector are trying to implement renewable sources like solar energy, tidal energy, etc. Continuing with this trend, the students at the School of Biological Sciences in University of East Anglia have found that certain species of bacteria could be used for producing clean energy. The researchers recently discovered the proteins in these bacteria that actually carry out the process of transfer of charge. The scientists demonstrated the extra molecular structure of these special purpose proteins. Their study got published in the reputed science journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

#-Link-Snipped-# This discovery is a major breakthrough in the field of bio energy and has opened up new avenues for cleaner and greener electricity generation. Now, the biologists and engineers are trying to find a way to make the bacterial cells adhere to the electrodes. Once this technology is perfected, then it can be used for manufacturing “bio-batteries” or microbial fuel cells. Bacteria that feed on human or animal waste and produce electricity will solve the problem of waste management as well. Also, this technology might be used to create microbe-based agents that can clean up oil or uranium pollution.

The research got funding from Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and the US Department of Energy (DOE). The project is led by Dr. Tom Clarke, Prof David Richardson and Prof Julea Butt of the School of Biological Sciences UEA. The UEA scientists worked in partnership with their fellow researchers at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in the United States of America. Dr. Clarke believes that understanding the structure of proteins and the process by which the charges are moved from inside to outside of the cell is a major advance in developing a feasible source of electricity.

The scientists used a technique called “X ray crystallography” to see the internal structure of protein molecules attached to a Shewanella Oneidensis cell substrate through which electric charge in the form of negatively charged electrons is transferred. Let’s hope that the bio batteries are soon available in the market for domestic purposes.

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