Study on Mechanism of a Direct Photosynthetic/Metabolic Bio-Fuel Cell (DPBFC) using Gene manipulated Bacteria and Prototyping of Flexible DPBFC

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In our laboratory, we have developed a mediator-less direct photosynthetic/metabolic bio-fuel cell (DPBFC) in which microparticles of polyaniline were adopted as the electrode material to extract electrons from bacteria In this paper, we selected Rhodopseudomonas palustris as a new fuel source which is activated by organic compounds and emits hydrogen. To improve the electron generation efficiency of R.palustris, gene manipulation was applied so as to suppress hydrogen emission and more electrons will be stored inside of R.palustris. As a result, the power density obtained by the mutant was 18.3μW/cm^2, which is higher than the wild type. In addition, to extend the cell life, it seems necessary to supply a medium to bacteria continuously, therefore, we have developed a medium flow system using water-absorbing polymer. The average flow rate was 32nl/min and the cell life for the mutant became 12 hours, that is six times longer than the previous DPBFC. In addition, we have prototyped a thin type flexible DPBFC by using a heat-sealing film and thermocompression process. As a result, the developed thin type flexible DPBFC(50×50×1mm) could generate the maximum power 64μW(4.65μW/cm2) when purple photosynthetic bacteria (Rhodopesudomonas palustris) was used as a fuel source.