Microbes Powered by Electricity Confirmed in First Experiment

Researchers at the Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology have experimentally confirmed that bacteria use electrons from hydrogen in microbial electrosynthesis to produce more chemical substances than previously known. Microbial electrosynthesis is a promising technology that can bind carbon dioxide, produce ethanol and other organic compounds that can be used as fuel, and thus store excess electricity. The researchers optimized the process for the highest possible yields and found that amino compounds were formed that the bacteria do not normally produce, which could be used in the chemical industry.