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Nano Research 2024, 17(6): 5390-5398 https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-024-6432-9
Research Article | Issue | Published: 25 January 2024

Boosting solar hydrogen production via electrostatic interaction mediated E. coli-TiO2−x biohybrid system

Show Author's Information Xingxing Lv1,2,  Weicheng Huang3,  Ya Gao1,  Rui Chen1,  Xiaowei Chen3,  Danqing Liu1( ),  Ling Weng1( ),  Liangcan He2,4( ),  Shaoqin Liu2,4
School of Material Science and Chemical Engineering, Harbin University of Science and Technology, Harbin 150040, China
School of Medicine and Health, and Key Laboratory of Micro-systems and Micro-structures Manufacturing of Ministry of Education, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150001, China
Department of Physics, School of Science, Jimei University, Xiamen 361021, China
Zhengzhou Research Institute, Harbin Institute of Technology, Zhengzhou 450046, China
Keywords:
hydrogen production, Escherichia coli, biohybrid system, TiO2−x nanoparticles
Topics:
Nanobiotechnology
Cite this article:
Lv X, Huang W, Gao Y, et al. Boosting solar hydrogen production via electrostatic interaction mediated E. coli-TiO2−x biohybrid system. Nano Research, 2024, 17(6): 5390-5398. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-024-6432-9
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Abstract Full text Electronic supplementary material About this article

Hydrogen is garnering growing attention as a green energy source with zero carbon emissions. However, most hydrogen production technologies still rely on the consumption of fossil fuels and are therefore unsustainable. This has driven the search for more environmentally friendly methods of hydrogen production. In this work, we present an innovative approach to enhance hydrogen generation via electrostatic interaction in the Escherichia coli and defective titanium dioxide (TiO2−x) biohybrids. Our method involves narrowing the forbidden bandwidth of TiO2 while introducing defect bands into its conduction band to facilitate visible light absorption and efficient charge separation. This biohybrid system, consisting of E. coli and TiO2−x, demonstrates a remarkable capability to produce 1.25 mmol of hydrogen within a 3-h timeframe under visible light irradiation. This accomplishment signifies a 3.31-fold rise in hydrogen production in comparison to E. coli, signifying a substantial enhancement in hydrogen production efficiency. Furthermore, we delve into the alterations in biological metabolites associated with hydrogen production and the changes in electron transfer in different biohybrid systems. It provides valuable insights into the understanding of the intrinsic mechanisms that drive the process. This work introduces a novel and promising avenue for achieving this exciting goal.


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Abstract
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Electronic supplementary material
About this article

Boosting solar hydrogen production via electrostatic interaction mediated E. coli-TiO2−x biohybrid system

Show Author's information Xingxing Lv1,2, Weicheng Huang3, Ya Gao1, Rui Chen1, Xiaowei Chen3, Danqing Liu1( ), Ling Weng1( ), Liangcan He2,4( ), Shaoqin Liu2,4
School of Material Science and Chemical Engineering, Harbin University of Science and Technology, Harbin 150040, China
School of Medicine and Health, and Key Laboratory of Micro-systems and Micro-structures Manufacturing of Ministry of Education, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150001, China
Department of Physics, School of Science, Jimei University, Xiamen 361021, China
Zhengzhou Research Institute, Harbin Institute of Technology, Zhengzhou 450046, China

Abstract

Hydrogen is garnering growing attention as a green energy source with zero carbon emissions. However, most hydrogen production technologies still rely on the consumption of fossil fuels and are therefore unsustainable. This has driven the search for more environmentally friendly methods of hydrogen production. In this work, we present an innovative approach to enhance hydrogen generation via electrostatic interaction in the Escherichia coli and defective titanium dioxide (TiO2−x) biohybrids. Our method involves narrowing the forbidden bandwidth of TiO2 while introducing defect bands into its conduction band to facilitate visible light absorption and efficient charge separation. This biohybrid system, consisting of E. coli and TiO2−x, demonstrates a remarkable capability to produce 1.25 mmol of hydrogen within a 3-h timeframe under visible light irradiation. This accomplishment signifies a 3.31-fold rise in hydrogen production in comparison to E. coli, signifying a substantial enhancement in hydrogen production efficiency. Furthermore, we delve into the alterations in biological metabolites associated with hydrogen production and the changes in electron transfer in different biohybrid systems. It provides valuable insights into the understanding of the intrinsic mechanisms that drive the process. This work introduces a novel and promising avenue for achieving this exciting goal.

Keywords: hydrogen production, Escherichia coli, biohybrid system, TiO2−x nanoparticles

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Publication history
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Acknowledgements

Publication history

Received: 19 November 2023
Revised: 13 December 2023
Accepted: 20 December 2023
Published: 25 January 2024
Issue date: June 2024

Copyright

© Tsinghua University Press 2024

Acknowledgements

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 52172085, 52273287, 52202091, and 51825202), the Key Laboratory of Micro-systems and Micro-structures Manufacturing (Harbin Institute of Technology), Ministry of Education (No. AUEA1890200122), was partially funded by the Natural Science Foundation of Heilongjiang Province of China for Excellent Young Scholars (No. YQ2022E020), and Heilongjiang Touyan Team (No. HITTY-20190036).

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