Putting Photosystem I to Work: Truly Green Energy.

Alexandra H Teodor, Barry D Bruce

Journal: Trends in biotechnology 2021;38(12):1329-1342

PMID: 32448469

Full Text on Elsevier Science View on PubMed

Abstract

Meeting growing energy demands sustainably is one of the greatest challenges facing the world. The sun strikes the Earth with sufficient energy in 1.5 h to meet annual world energy demands, likely making solar energy conversion part of future sustainable energy production plans. Photosynthetic organisms have been evolving solar energy utilization strategies for nearly 3.5 billion years, making reaction centers including the remarkably stable Photosystem I (PSI) especially interesting for biophotovoltaic device integration. Although these biohybrid devices have steadily improved, their output remains low compared with traditional photovoltaics. We discuss strategies and methods to improve PSI-based biophotovoltaics, focusing on PSI-surface interaction enhancement, electrolytes, and light-harvesting enhancement capabilities. Desirable features and current drawbacks to PSI-based devices are also discussed.

Address: Graduate School of Genome Science and Technology, University of Tennessee at Knoxville, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA; Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37830, USA.; Graduate School of Genome Science and Technology, University of Tennessee at Knoxville, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA; Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37830, USA; Department of Biochemistry, Cellular, and Molecular Biology, University of Tennessee at Knoxville, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA; Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Tennessee at Knoxville, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA. Electronic address: [email protected].

DOI: 10.1016/j.tibtech.2020.04.004

Link outs

Subscription / membership required

Full Text Sources:

MeSH Terms: Bioelectric Energy Sources, Photosynthesis, Photosystem I Protein Complex, Solar Energy, Sunlight