Researchers reveal how bacteria produce hydrogen naturally, paving the way for scientists to imitate the process to produce the chemical element easily and cheaply.
In order to attain clean, sustainable energy, researchers have been looking for a way to make hydrogen easily. Bacteria have been producing the element naturally for billions of years. Thus, in a recent study, researchers from University of California - Davis looked into how the micro-organism conduct this process, paving the way for researchers to imitate them to produce the chemical element easily and cheaply.
"It's pretty interesting that bacteria can do this," said David Britt, professor of chemistry at UC Davis and co-author on the paper. "We want to know how nature builds these catalysts - from a chemist's perspective, these are really strange things."
After studying the catalysts' structures using a technique called electron paramagnetic resonance, researchers noted that they are organized clusters of sulfur and iron atoms that have side groups of carbon monoxide and cyanide. These molecules can be highly toxic if they are not controlled properly.
They also found a series of chemical reactions involving a type of highly reactive enzyme called radical SAM enzyme. The tyrosine is attached to a cluster of four iron atoms and four sulfur atoms, then cut loose leaving the cyanide and carbon monoxide groups behind.
"People think of radicals as dangerous, but this enzyme directs the radical chemistry, along with the production of normally poisonous CO and CN, along safe and productive pathways," Britt said.
Using these new findings, researchers can now imitate bacteria and produce hydrogen in a more cost-effective manner. However, a few other studies need to be conducted in order for researchers to begin producing hydrogen in laboratories.
The team of researchers used another technique called Fourier Transform Infrared to determine how the iron-cyanide-carbon monoxide complex is formed. The findings of this part of the study will be published later this week.
