What is it about?
In the fight against climate change, we need new green technologies that can sustainably produce fuels and chemicals using the power of the sun. One promising solution comes from microalgae, tiny living cells that use sunlight to make energy and can even split water to release clean hydrogen gas. But there’s a problem: when grown in large tanks, microalgae often waste much of the incoming light because it doesn’t reach deep into the culture. This limits how much hydrogen they can produce. Our research addresses this challenge with a new idea: creating ultra-thin layers made from natural, bio-based materials where microalgae are gently trapped. These special films can even be 3D-printed with a multilayer design that improves light distribution. By selecting strains especially good at producing hydrogen, we achieved much higher performance compared to traditional cultivation methods. These results provide an exciting proof-of-concept for a new kind of solar-powered biocatalyst — a step forward toward clean, renewable hydrogen production.
Featured Image
Photo by Sarang Pande on Unsplash
Why is it important?
Hydrogen is a powerful energy carrier that can be used to power vehicles, industries, and homes without releasing harmful emissions. By employing microalgae and natural materials, our method is environmentally friendly and renewable. Improving how efficiently algae can use light to produce hydrogen is a key step toward making this technology practical for large-scale use. If successful, it could help reduce our dependence on polluting energy sources and support the transition to a more sustainable, low-carbon future. This research relates to the following Sustainable Development Goals: • SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy • SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production • SDG 13: Climate Action Keywords: Engineered photosynthetic living materials, Light harvesting efficiency, Energy conversion efficiency, Solar-to-chemical conversion, Biohybrid devices, Artificial leaf, Photocatalysis, Solid-state photosynthetic cell factories, Photosynthesis, Solar hydrogen.
Perspectives
From my perspective, this research represents an exciting step toward truly sustainable energy solutions. I’ve always been fascinated by how nature solves complex problems, and microalgae, with their ability to turn sunlight and water into energy-rich compounds, are a perfect example. Yet, I also see the gap between what they can do in the lab and what’s needed in real-world applications. Designing these biocatalysts was both a scientific and engineering challenge, and it’s incredibly rewarding to see how a specific organization of algal cells within the matrix can lead to a big improvement in hydrogen production.
Dr Sergey N Kosourov
Turun Yliopisto
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Engineered biocatalytic architecture for enhanced light utilisation in algal H2 production, Energy & Environmental Science, January 2025, Royal Society of Chemistry,
DOI: 10.1039/d4ee03075c.
You can read the full text:
Resources
Solid-state photosynthetic cell factories
Imagine a solar panel made not of metal and silicon, but of living microbes. That’s the main idea behind solid-state photosynthetic cell factories. In these systems, photosynthetic organisms such as algae or cyanobacteria are embedded in a thin, leaf-like matrix that supports and protects them.
Photosynthetic Hydrogen Production by Green Algae
This project aims to understand the complex processes involved in H₂ generation by algae while addressing critical challenges such as the sensitivity of H₂ production to oxygen co-evolved during photosynthesis and competition with CO₂ fixation. By overcoming these challenges, the project aims to enhance both the efficiency and long-term sustainability of algae-based hydrogen production.
Engineering biofilm architecture for efficient light utilization
FinnCERES presentation explains how this approach works
Contributors
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