Algae will become the key source of hydrogen fuel in the future

As gasoline prices continue to rise, drivers are expecting an alternative fuel source to keep them from tightening their belts.

Scientists at the Argonne National Laboratory of the US Department of Energy are responding to this expectation by conducting algae manipulation in chemistry to build a new generation of renewable fuels - that is hydrogen gas.

"We believe there is a fundamental advantage in looking at the production of hydrogen by photosynthesis," said senior chemist David Tiede. 'Currently, ethanol is being made from corn, but the manufacturing process is less efficient in terms of thermodynamics.'

Some types of algae - single-celled plants - contain an enzyme called hydrogenase (an enzyme that catalyzes hydrogen for a compound in a reducing reaction) that can produce a small amount of hydrogen gas. Tiede said that many people think that nature has applied this as a method of removing the excessively decreasing equivalents, these levels of equivalence are created under high light conditions, but plants have Very little benefit.

Algae in ponds.Scientists are conducting research on algae manipulated by chemicals for the creation of a new generation of renewable fuels - hydrogen gas.(Photo: Michele Hogan)

Tiede and his team are trying to find a way to take part of this gas-producing enzyme and put it into photosynthesis. The result will be a large amount of hydrogen gas equal to the amount of oxygen produced.

Tiede said: 'Biology can do this, but the problem is that it can only produce 5-10%. What we want to do is take that catalyst out of the hydrogenase and put it into the photosynthetic protein mechanism. We are very fortunate to have collaborated with Professor Thomas Rauchfuss from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, who is a researcher on the synthesis of hydrogenase activity signals ".

Algae have some advantages over corn in fuel production.It can grow in a closed system almost everywhere including desert or roofs, and there is no competition for fertile food or soil. Algae are also easier to collect because they do not have roots or fruits and develop dispersal in the water.

'If you have terrestrial plants like corn, you will be limited to where you can grow them,' Tiede said. 'There is a problem now that biofuel crops compete with food crops because they both use the same space. Algae will provide an alternative fuel source that you can grow in a closed photosynthetic bioreactor similar to the bacteria fermentation pot that you travel anywhere. '

Tiede admits that the research is in its early stages, but he is confident with his research team and research objectives. The next step is to create a method for attaching catalytic enzymes to molecules. The study was supported by the US Department of Energy, Department of Science and Department of Basic Energy.