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Researchers developed a biofuel cell that uses plant roots to produce electricity, with roots releasing redox species to generate a continuous electric current for over 24 hours.

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What they did

System
MFC

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Abstract

In recent years, extensive scientific efforts have been conducted to develop clean bioenergy technologies. A promising approach that has been under development for more than a hundred years is the microbial fuel cell (MFC) which utilizes exoelectrogenic bacteria as an electron source in a bioelectrochemical cell. The viability of bacteria in soil MFCs can be maintained by integrating plant roots, which release organic materials that feed the bacteria. In this work, we show that rather than organic compounds, roots also release redox species that can produce electricity in a biofuel cell. We first studied the reduction of the electron acceptor Cytochrome C by green onion roots. We integrate green onion roots into a biofuel cell to produce a continuous bias-free electric current for more than 24 h in the dark. This current is enhanced upon irradiation of the onion's leaves with light. We apply cyclic voltammetry and 2D-fluorescence measurements to show that NADH and NADPH act as major electron mediators between the roots and the anode, while their concentrations in the external root matrix are increased upon irradiation of the leaves. Finally, we show that roots can contribute to energy storage by charging a supercapacitor.

Key findings

  • Plant roots can produce electricity through the release of redox species.
  • NADH and NADPH act as major electron mediators between the roots and the anode.
  • Irradiation of the plant's leaves increases the concentration of NADH and NADPH in the root matrix.

Keywords

Microbial fuel cellElectron acceptorBiofuelAnodeCyclic voltammetryBioenergy

Identifiers

DOI
10.1021/acsbiomaterials.3c01174
PubMed
37756260
Journal
ACS biomaterials science & engineering
Year
2023