According to Taiwan media reported on January 10, reducing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is to reduce or even reverse the global warming challenge, so the current low-carbon electricity, electricity conservation and carbon sequestration (CCD) is considered to be the necessary three major events, but how? Enclosed carbon dioxide is a technical challenge. Recently, in order to solve this problem, scientists proposed using E. coli to convert carbon dioxide into easily-treated formic acid.
At present, carbon sequestration is mainly carried out by deeply burying carbon dioxide into the ground, which will crystallize into carbonate minerals with ground minerals, and has little impact on the environment. However, the deep subterranean method requires special geological structure, so we still need more Kind of treatment method.
Recently, Frank Sargent of the College of Life Sciences at the University of Dundee in Scotland collaborated with local industry companies Sasol UK and Ingenza Ltd to develop a method of using E. coli to metabolize carbon dioxide Carbon dioxide storage problem.
Professor Shajete said: "There are many different solutions that are needed to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, and Nature has long provided us with some options because, from the very beginning, the organism started from an anaerobic environment. Single-cell bacteria often live at extreme Environment, and carry out special chemical reactions that plants and animals can not.
An example of this is Escherichia coli, which can live in an oxygen-free environment and produce a special enzyme called FHL that converts gaseous carbon dioxide into liquid formic acid, making it easy to store, control, and even use .
However, the normal conversion process is slow and unreliable, so scientists are experimenting with a variety of environments in the hope that Escherichia coli can quickly treat carbon dioxide and found that when Escherichia coli is exposed to 10 atmospheres of mixed carbon dioxide and hydrogen, the reaction Speed becomes fast, in a few hours can be combined is completed.
Professor Shajete said: 'This is a major breakthrough in the field of biotechnology. We are further improving the system so that it will become a factory from the laboratory and eventually become a carbon dioxide-depleting bacteria factory.'
Reported that Escherichia coli is one of the most common bacteria, it exists in the human gut, usually peace with the intestinal tract coexistence, but if too much coliform bacteria can cause stomach pain and diarrhea, so the number of E. coli is water In addition, some E. coli are toxic, such as O157 coliforms produce powerful toxins, leading to a rather dangerous hemorrhagic intestinal disease. However, as long as the proper use of coliform bacteria You can save the planet too.
Professor Shajete said: "The most important impact of this study is that it can be factory-made, that it does not need to find a suitable geological environment for the implementation of carbon sequestration, and that formic acid also has industrial uses. It is a preservative and antibacterial agent in feed, It is also a tanning agent for the leather industry and can also be used for the synthesis of airport runway de-icing agents for new uses of CO2.
