A shift in the current: new applications and concepts for microbe-electrode electron exchange.

TitleA shift in the current: new applications and concepts for microbe-electrode electron exchange.
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2011
AuthorsLovley DR, Nevin KP
JournalCurr Opin Biotechnol
Volume22
Issue3
Pagination441-8
Date Published2011 Jun
ISSN1879-0429
KeywordsBacteria, Biodegradation, Environmental, Biofuels, Carbon Dioxide, Electricity, Electrodes, Electrons, Environmental Pollutants, Fungi, Microbiological Phenomena, Organic Chemicals
Abstract

Perceived applications of microbe-electrode interactions are shifting from production of electric power to other technologies, some of which even consume current. Electrodes can serve as stable, long-term electron acceptors for contaminant-degrading microbes to promote rapid degradation of organic pollutants in anaerobic subsurface environments. Solar and other forms of renewable electrical energy can be used to provide electrons extracted from water to microorganisms on electrodes at suitably low potentials for a number of groundwater bioremediation applications as well as for the production of fuels and other organic compounds from carbon dioxide. The understanding of how microorganisms exchange electrons with electrodes has improved substantially and is expected to be helpful in optimizing practical applications of microbe-electrode interactions, as well as yielding insights into related natural environmental phenomena.

DOI10.1016/j.copbio.2011.01.009
Alternate JournalCurr. Opin. Biotechnol.
PubMed ID21333524