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Sulfide-driven microbial electrosynthesis.

Yanming Gong1, Ali Ebrahim, Adam M Feist

  • 1Department of Bioengineering, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, United States.

Environmental Science & Technology
|December 21, 2012
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Sulfide effectively replaces water as an electron source in microbial electrosynthesis, boosting carbon dioxide conversion to acetate. This advancement offers a more efficient pathway for producing organic molecules using electricity.

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Area of Science:

  • Microbial electrosynthesis
  • Electrochemistry
  • Biotechnology

Background:

  • Microbial electrosynthesis (MES) converts CO2 to organic molecules using electricity.
  • Acetogenic microorganisms like Sporomusa ovata have demonstrated MES.
  • Current MES typically relies on water hydrolysis for electrons, requiring low potentials.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate sulfide as an alternative electron donor for MES.
  • To assess the efficiency of sulfide oxidation for providing electrons.
  • To determine the acetate production rates using sulfide in MES.

Main Methods:

  • Abiotic oxidation of sulfide on a graphite anode.
  • Biotic oxidation of elemental sulfur to sulfate by Desulfobulbus propionicus.
  • Reduction of CO2 to acetate on a cathode by Sporomusa ovata or Desulfuromonas.

Main Results:

  • Sulfide oxidation (abiotic and biotic) provided eight electrons for CO2 reduction.
  • Sporomusa ovata achieved acetate production of 24.8 mmol/day·m².
  • Desulfuromonas as anode biocatalyst yielded 49.9 mmol/day·m² acetate with >90% Coulombic efficiency.

Conclusions:

  • Sulfide is an effective electron donor for microbial electrosynthesis.
  • This method enhances CO2 conversion efficiency compared to water-based systems.
  • Sulfide-driven MES offers a promising route for sustainable chemical production.