Scientists at the University of Georgia have created a microbe that
converts carbon dioxide into bio-fuel, a discovery that might boost the
battle against climate change.
Carbon dioxide is a major cause
of global warming, but it's also fundamental to life on Earth. As any
good toxicologist knows, "the dose makes the poison."
And thanks to new research at the University of Georgia, we might soon
have an antidote for too much CO2: a manmade version of the microbe
Pyrococcus furiosus, or "rushing fireball," that absorbs CO2 and
converts it into fuel. If P. furiosus can work on a large enough scale,
it might even help displace carbon-positive fossil fuels like coal and
oil.
In photosynthesis, plants use sunlight to turn water and
CO2 into energy-packed sugars, forming the base of Earth's food web.
These sugars can also be fermented into biofuels like ethanol, but as
Adams points out, removing them from a plant's cells is relatively
inefficient due to the energy input required. P. furiosus, however, may
offer a shortcut.
The microbe is a deep-sea "extremophile,"
thriving in violent conditions that would obliterate most organisms. It
feeds on carbohydrates in super-heated seawater around hydrothermal
vents, but by tweaking its genetic material, Adams and his colleagues
created a new kind of P. furiosus that likes cooler temperatures and
eats CO2.
The researchers then used hydrogen gas to spark a
chemical reaction inside the microbe, prompting it to incorporate CO2
into 3-hydroxypropionic acid, a common industrial acid that's used to
make acrylics. With further genetic manipulations, they can also create a
P. furiosus variant that produces an array of other useful chemicals,
including fuel. And when that biofuel is burned, the researchers note,
it releases the same amount of CO2 that was used to create it. That
means it's essentially carbon-neutral, making it a cleaner alternative
to fossil-based fuels like coal, crude oil and gasoline.
Thanks: http://www.biotecnika.org/news
Keep Sharing ..!
Scientists at the University of Georgia have created a microbe that
converts carbon dioxide into bio-fuel, a discovery that might boost the
battle against climate change.
Carbon dioxide is a major cause
of global warming, but it's also fundamental to life on Earth. As any
good toxicologist knows, "the dose makes the poison."
And thanks to new research at the University of Georgia, we might soon
have an antidote for too much CO2: a manmade version of the microbe
Pyrococcus furiosus, or "rushing fireball," that absorbs CO2 and
converts it into fuel. If P. furiosus can work on a large enough scale,
it might even help displace carbon-positive fossil fuels like coal and
oil.
In photosynthesis, plants use sunlight to turn water and
CO2 into energy-packed sugars, forming the base of Earth's food web.
These sugars can also be fermented into biofuels like ethanol, but as
Adams points out, removing them from a plant's cells is relatively
inefficient due to the energy input required. P. furiosus, however, may
offer a shortcut.
The microbe is a deep-sea "extremophile,"
thriving in violent conditions that would obliterate most organisms. It
feeds on carbohydrates in super-heated seawater around hydrothermal
vents, but by tweaking its genetic material, Adams and his colleagues
created a new kind of P. furiosus that likes cooler temperatures and
eats CO2.
The researchers then used hydrogen gas to spark a
chemical reaction inside the microbe, prompting it to incorporate CO2
into 3-hydroxypropionic acid, a common industrial acid that's used to
make acrylics. With further genetic manipulations, they can also create a
P. furiosus variant that produces an array of other useful chemicals,
including fuel. And when that biofuel is burned, the researchers note,
it releases the same amount of CO2 that was used to create it. That
means it's essentially carbon-neutral, making it a cleaner alternative
to fossil-based fuels like coal, crude oil and gasoline.
Thanks: http://www.biotecnika.org/news
Keep Sharing ..!
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