Archinect - News

Biogenic, bacteria-powered solar cells can generate electricity even under overcast skies

2018-07-20T15:00:00-04:00

Their cell generated a current stronger than any previously recorded from such a device, and worked as efficiently in dim light as in bright light. This innovation could be a step toward wider adoption of solar power in places like British Columbia and parts of northern Europe where overcast skies are common. With further development, these solar cells—called “biogenic” because they are made of living organisms—could become as efficient as the synthetic cells used in conventional solar panels.

While this isn't the first effort to build biogenic, bacteria-powered solar cells, scientists at the University of British Columbia claim to have discovered a novel, highly cost-effective, and much more sustainable way to use the photosynthesis capabilities of certain bacteria to convert light (even dim light) to energy.

"They genetically engineered E. coli to produce large amounts of lycopene—a dye that gives tomatoes their red-orange colour and is particularly effective at harvesting light for conversion to energy," explains the UBC announcement. "The researchers coated the bacteria with a mineral that could act as a semiconductor, and applied the mixture to a glass surface. With the coated glass acting as an anode at one end of their cell, they generated a current density of 0.686 milliamps per square centimetre—an improvement on the 0.362 achieved by others in the field."

More research is needed to turn this newly discovered method into market-ready biogenic solar panels.

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This bacteria-infused concrete "heals" when cracked

2017-05-11T12:35:00-04:00

While there's no word on what would happen if someone skinned their knee on this bacteria-infused concrete, the premise is certainly intriguing in theory: concrete that patches cracks in itself for up to 200 years after its initial formation. Here's a brief video outlining the process:

The viral "metropolises" of your skin

2015-11-03T19:28:00-05:00

In the microbial metropolises that thrive in and on the human body, underground networks of viruses loom large. A closer look at human skin has found that it's teeming with viruses, most of which don't target us but infect the microbes that live there. Almost 95 percent of those skin-dwelling virus communities are unclassified...Those unknown viruses may prune, manipulate, and hide out in the skin’s bacterial communities, which in turn can make the difference between human health and disease...

Study finds antibacterial soap no more effective than regular soap

2015-09-17T11:22:00-04:00

Scientists in Korea have discovered that using antibacterial soap when hand-washing is no more effective than using plain soap, according to a paper published today in the Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy... The study examined the effect of triclosan...on bacteria in two ways. The first was to examine the bactericidal effects of triclosan in soaps against all 20 strains, and the second compared the ability of antibacterial and non-antibacterial soap to remove bacteria from human hands...

For related Archinect articles:

Even bacteria are architects

2014-07-29T12:02:00-04:00

Until present, we knew of similar patterns created from saline solutions and isolated proteins, but this is the first report that demonstrates how whole bacterial cells can manage the crystallisation of sodium chloride (NaCl) and generate self-organised biosaline structures of a fractal or dendritic appearance.

Recent work by researchers from the Laboratory of BioMineralogy and Astrobiological Research at the University of Valladolid-CSIC, Spain, has discovered that bacteria manipulate salt to build shelters to hibernate.

h/t @Geoff Manaugh

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