‘Bacteria batteries’ For Energy Storage
Scientists at Pennsylvania State University are pioneering a method whereby electrical energy is stored as methane, which can then be burned to release power when it’s needed. The system’s active ‘ingredients’ are a combination of tiny microbes and CO2. Placed under an electrical current – for example from an off-grid renewable power source such as wind or solar – the microbes convert the CO2 into methane. Professor Bruce Logan, head of the research team, explains that they work in a similar way to the natural process found in marshes.
The initial carbon dioxide needed for the chemical reaction could even come from industrial sources: “CO2 is soluble in water, so the gas stream could be bubbled or transferred” in pipes from factories, for example. The ‘battery’ is designed to work as a closed loop, capturing and reusing the CO2 that’s released when the methane is burned. The energy conversion is about 80%, Logan claims, but admits that “a lot more research into scaling up these systems is needed” before commercial viability could be assessed.
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The initial carbon dioxide needed for the chemical reaction could even come from industrial sources: “CO2 is soluble in water, so the gas stream could be bubbled or transferred” in pipes from factories, for example. The ‘battery’ is designed to work as a closed loop, capturing and reusing the CO2 that’s released when the methane is burned. The energy conversion is about 80%, Logan claims, but admits that “a lot more research into scaling up these systems is needed” before commercial viability could be assessed.
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