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Generating Electric Current by Bioartificial Photosynthesis

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Bioelectrosynthesis

Part of the book series: Advances in Biochemical Engineering/Biotechnology ((ABE,volume 167))

Abstract

Abundant solar energy can be a sustainable source of energy. This chapter highlights recent advancements, challenges, and future scenarios in bioartificial photosynthesis, which is a new subset of bioelectrochemical systems (BESs) and technologies. BES technologies exploit the catalytic interactions between biological moieties and electrodes. At the nexus of BES and photovoltaics, this review focuses on light-harvesting technologies based on bioartificial photosynthesis. Such technologies are promising because electrical energy is generated from sunlight and water without the need for additional organic feedstock. This review focuses on photosynthetic electron generation and transfer and compares the current status of bioartificial photosynthesis with other artificial systems that mimic the chemistry of photosynthetic energy transformation.

The fundamental principles and the operation of functional units of bioartificial photosynthesis are addressed. Selected photobioelectrochemical systems employed to obtain light-driven electric currents from photosynthetic organisms are presented. The achievable current output and theoretical maxima are revisited by conceptualizing operational and process window techniques. Factors affecting overall photocurrent efficiency, performance limitations, and scaleup bottlenecks are highlighted in view of enhancing the energy conversion efficiency of photobioelectrochemical systems. To finish, the challenges associated with bioartificial photosynthetic technologies are outlined.

Operational window for (bio-)artificial photosynthesis. Green circle in the upper right corner: development objective for research and engineering efforts

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Abbreviations

BES:

Bioelectrochemical system

BPV:

Biophotovoltaic

Chl a :

Chlorophyll a

cyt-b6f:

Cytochrome-b6f

FTO:

Fluorine-doped tin oxide

ITO:

Indium tin oxide

MET:

Microbial electrochemical technology

MFC:

Microbial fuel cell

OEC:

Oxygen-evolving complex

OPV:

Organic photovoltaic

PC:

Plastocyanin

PETC:

Photosynthetic electron transport chain

Pheo:

Pheophytin

PS:

Photosystem

PV:

Photovoltaic

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Acknowledgment

The authors are grateful for using the facilities of the Centre for Biocatalysis (MiKat) at the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, which is supported by European Regional Development Funds (EFRE – Europe funds Saxony) and the Helmholtz Association.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Solar Materials, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research GmbH – UFZ, Leipzig, Germany

    Babu Halan, Jenny Tschörtner & Andreas Schmid

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  1. Babu Halan
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  2. Jenny Tschörtner
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  3. Andreas Schmid
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Andreas Schmid .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Microbiology, Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research GmbH - UFZ, Leipzig, Germany

    Falk Harnisch

  2. Industrial Biotechnology, DECHEMA-Forschungsinstitut, Frankfurt am Main, Germany

    Dirk Holtmann

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Halan, B., Tschörtner, J., Schmid, A. (2017). Generating Electric Current by Bioartificial Photosynthesis. In: Harnisch, F., Holtmann, D. (eds) Bioelectrosynthesis. Advances in Biochemical Engineering/Biotechnology, vol 167. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/10_2017_44

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