Hybrid bio-photo-electro-chemical cells for solar water splitting.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 27550091.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/ncomms12552 and PMC identifier 4996976.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Photoelectrochemical water splitting uses solar power to decompose water to hydrogen and oxygen. Here we show how the photocatalytic activity of thylakoid membranes leads to overall water splitting in a bio-photo-electro-chemical (BPEC) cell via a simple process. Thylakoids extracted from spinach are introduced into a BPEC cell containing buffer solution with ferricyanide. Upon solar-simulated illumination, water oxidation takes place and electrons are shuttled by the ferri/ferrocyanide redox couple from the thylakoids to a transparent electrode serving as the anode, yielding a photocurrent density of 0.5 mA cm(-2). Hydrogen evolution occurs at the cathode at a bias as low as 0.8 V. A tandem cell comprising the BPEC cell and a Si photovoltaic module achieves overall water splitting with solar to hydrogen efficiency of 0.3%. These results demonstrate the promise of combining natural photosynthetic membranes and man-made photovoltaic cells in order to convert solar power into hydrogen fuel.
Medical subject headings
- Photochemical Processes
- Photosynthesis
- Solar Energy
- Sunlight
- Water