Conjugated oligoelectrolytes increase power generation in E. coli microbial fuel cells.

Hou, Huijie; Chen, Xiaofen; Thomas, Alexander W; Catania, Chelsea; Kirchhofer, Nathan D; Garner, Logan E; Han, Arum; Bazan, Guillermo C · Adv Mater · 2013

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

A series of conjugated oligoelectrolytes with structural variations is used to stain E. coli. By taking advantage of a high-throughput screening platform that incorporates gold anodes, it is found that MFCs with COE-modified E. coli generate significantly higher power densities, relative to unmodified E. coli. These findings highlight the potential of using water-soluble molecules inspired by the work on organic semiconductors to improve electrode/microbe interfaces.

Medical subject headings