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Breakthrough in Electricity-Producing Microbe
University of Massachusetts researchers have made a breakthrough with "Geobacter," a microbe that produces electric current from mud and wastewater. A conservative estimate puts the energy output increase at eight times that of the original organism, potentially allowing applications far beyond that of extracting electricity from mud. "Now, planning can move forward to design microbial fuel cells that convert waste water and renewable biomass to electricity, treat a single home's waste while producing localized power (especially attractive in developing countries), power mobile electronics, vehicles and implanted medical devices, and drive bioremediation of contaminated environments."
...welcome our new shit-eating overlords?
- This story stinks!
- The OP is full of shit!
- I get shitty service on my phone now!
I'll show myself out.
Mod me down with all of your hatred and your journey towards the dark side will be complete!
a microbe that produces electric current from mud? This will increase the long dormant demand for mud pies! Need to re-charge your ipod? Mudpie! Scared that taser is going to kill the suspect? Throw a mud-pie! Now with electro-conductive pie places!
I must tour a rural village powered by electric mud. I'll just hop in my flying car and be right over.
Do I even need to go into What Could Possibly Go Wrong mode when discussing the prospects of using electricity-generating bacteria to power medical devices implanted in your body?
Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
When I'm done with you, you're gonna' eat thunder and crap lightning!
Obama calls for "regime change" in the Republic of Elbonia.
And in East Elbonia, they are planning on dominating the world's energy market in 20 years....
www.eFax.com are spammers
. . . um, . . . renewable energy resource all these years . . .
Schroedinger's Brexit: The UK is both in and out of the EU at the same time!
Maybe it's time to evaluate 2 girls 1 cup for educational reasons...
Then again maybe not
Boston you're my home.
How should we name the unit to represent Joules Per Flush? I vote for the Crapper.
This is wonderful news. Ideas like these are the kind of things that turn energy into a free for all. Remember the water cycle? Any American was taught this process by at least middle school. IMHO creating an "Energy Cycle" is our ultimate goal here. Who knew a septic tank would end up back in style? Hook up a few power cables and whammo! Instant power station. Yes, I'm full of shit. I have the power.
Where genius and insanity become confused true wisdom is found
We don't have enough shit over here? we don't need electricity over here?
Why can't we use that technology to make the water treatment plants produce electricity while they also treat our wastes?Â
I'm curious if they might be able to combine this with another microbe or filtering system that would enable it to purify the water too. If they could, you could get an almost closed water system thus solving a lot of the water issues across the US. Or if it could desalinate water while producing power :)
...when do we finally get a working weather service??
This isn't a new bacteria! This creature was invented by God and was on the Ark with Noah six thousand years ago!
Utilizing the synergization of benchmark e-solutions to pre-workaround action items!
soon we'll be purchasing dirt and instead of oil, declaring war against third world countries to steal their wastes, and those environmentalists are gonna whine about the smell.
Do you D?
So brown is the new green?
Except machines will be using humans for ... well... you know which way to make electricity.
In-pod plumbing... it's gonna be big!
Hyperom.com
The Geobacter biofilm's "fortuitous" electron-transferring skill, the product of natural selection, suggested a pathway to Lovley - a way he might use selective pressure to increase its capacity to produce power. He and colleagues grew Geobacter as usual on a graphite electrode, providing acetate as food and allowing a colony to form the biologically active slime, or biofilm where electron transfer takes place across the nanowires. But for this new experiment they added a tiny, 400-millivolt "pushback" current in the electrode that forced Geobacter to press harder to get rid of its electrons.
The result of providing a more challenging environment, within five short months, Lovley notes, was evolution of a beefed-up microorganism that can press at least eight times more electric current across the electrode than the original strain. âoeI'm really happy with this outcome," the microbiologist notes. "It's exceptionally fast feedback to us and a very satisfying result." He adds, "I'm still a little amazed that they make electricity, but I'm happy to be exploring how to harness that ability. I'm sure there'll be applications developed in the future that we canâ(TM)t even envision right now."
That's halfway down in the article.
You should try reading things before you try to debunk them. The environment will be created to get the most electricity out of the little microbes, and probably sealed off and not thrown in the dirt. I imagine there may even be filters in place where the waste comes into make sure that any natural predators are weakened or killed to continue allowing the organisms to thrive.
And they have been studying this organism since 1987, and examining it for electrical production since 2002. I'm glad you're skeptical, but not glad that you're commenting on something you didn't even bother to read.
Yes, because no one could ever make any money selling a free-energy machine...
... and that's when the C.H.U.D.'s came at me.
I think mud is a euphemism for many of us. The riverbed, in this case, might be the bottom of sewage treatment plants. As for other bacteria, we could heat the "mud" up for a while to largely sterilize it to reduce that competition.
But it seems like this would (if it could operate in munch dryer situations) be an ideal additive to compost heaps to get a little more out of them...
First, a citation to the published paper: Hana Yi, et al., Selection of a variant of Geobacter sulfurreducens with enhanced capacity for current production in microbial fuel cells, Biosensors and Bioelectronics, Volume 24, Issue 12, 15 August 2009, Pages 3498-3503.
The extrapolated current density was 7.4 ± 0.1 A/m2. The individual fuel cells produced 14mA, which was sustained for 24 months.
So now we can starting using the human body to produce electricity?
1. you get a tingly feeling every time you sit on the toilet, and its not from your feet falling asleep
2. if your septic tank overflows you're in danger of electrocuting the family dog
3. you also have to be careful where you piss, or you'll know what its like to urinate on the third rail of light rail system
intellectual property law is philosophically incoherent. it is your moral duty to ignore it or sabotage it
MR FUSION!! http://bttf.wikia.com/wiki/Mr._Fusion
Every now and then we read about some new energy producing mean, it just makes me wonder... Can anyone even begin to imagine what would a society based on these technologies look like? They are very diverse and seem to cover ever encreasing aspects of our lives. Each one could take care of a bit of our smaller needs and nuclear energy could be the only massive one, providing for larger needs in a world with ever more energy-efficient technologies. What if through technology we can reach a society with no more big energy concerns, just by sort of cutting the sharp edges of our wastes? Anyone knows some hard science fiction dealing with this kind of society?
..."Dennis! There's some Lovely Filth down here!"...
-=JML=-
"A planet where apes evolved from men?? Take your stinking paws off me, you damned dirty microbe!"
Python: 'And then suddenly you have a language which says "we're all stuck with whatever the whiniest coder wants".'
... what's to stop the microbes from evolving/adapting BACK to the lower output when they're placed in a rich environment (fuel cell, whatever) again? Stupid researchers... they forget that mutation doesn't only occur when they want it to occur and not only in the fashion they desire.
The lines around Taco Bell are gonna be huge!
Peter
Technology Translator for Stupiduser.com
Of course free-energy machines would sell, bigtime even! But *what i am afraid will happen* (that is NOT the same as 'I tell you this will happen!') is that other, bigger businesses which would loss energy sales and thus profit, will buy (things like) this and hold it back to protect their interests. Try to win from $Big_Business as a small startup company!
I HOPE I am too pessimistic here, I really, really want things like this to succeed, but if the vested interests want to stop it, they will try with all their might.
(Just like, imagine, there would be a free Operating System that might form a threat to a Big Software Company).
What person will donate an airborne act of love?
Well, if BP (or any other firm) would pick this up and make it successfull, I will be the first to celebrate!
As I said in a previous answer in this thread, I really hope it succeeds. I'm just afraid the vested interests will (want to) make it fail.
And I said it in my original posting and will say it again: I don't mean to troll or flamebait, it's just me being (hopefully too) pessimistic.
What person will donate an airborne act of love?
Especially since I have none. Alas, good job!
If this microbe escaped from the lab, we'd all be in trouble. Can you imagine the headlines we'd start to see all over the world?
- Man electrocuted on toilet
- Tip for rainy weather: wear well-insulated boots when walking in mud
- Tomato fields plagued by ball lightning after manure fertilization
- In the 3rd world, muddy unpaved roads power electric scooters
The idea of dipping my iPhone into the nearest bucket of shit sickens me, and yet this may become the favored means of charging one's phone in a hurry.
I suppose a welcome next step will be a second microbe that neutralizes the stench.
it's = "it is"; its = possessive. E.g., it's flapping its wings.
The thing is, the smarter oil companies are rebranding/re-aligning themeselves as energy companies. If they see practical profit in it, which is necessary for any reasonable power system, theyll grab it and develop. Id be more worried about them patenting things and making it overpriced.
We get at least one of these stories a week on /. A story about some wonderful new potential source of "Free" Green Energy. Of course none are anywhere near production and nobody sane even talks about them producing energy at costs per KWK anywhere near current technology. But as long as new miracle tech can be waved in front of folks the need to face up to our current reality can be postponed by wishful thinking.
Reality:
1. No "Alternate" Energy source is believed to be capable of producing a sizable fraction of our current energy needs at competitive rates in the next twenty years. Wind and solar are only popular in areas with massive government subsidy because they aren't cost effective on their own. And any attempt to scale either to carry large percentages of the grid will only make those issues clear and reveal more problems. Hydrogen is itself 'clean' but none of the sources are easy to tap in a clean way with one politically unacceptable (Nuke power) exception. Biofuels create egoboo for greens in small quantities but lead to famine when scaled up.
2. To obtain oil we are sending a large share of our wealth to people who are using it to destroy our civilization. This is a very bad idea.
3. The greens might have a point with the whole AGW thing. And even if their math and models are all wet it is likely we are having SOME effect somewhere with all this drilling, extracting and burning of fossil fuels.
4. Fusion has been thirty years off for the last forty years.
We really need to have a hard look at those realities, stop dreaming of a painless solution and start looking at options that might actually be able to help in the next twenty years.
Democrat delenda est
Of course free-energy machines would sell, bigtime even! But *what i am afraid will happen* (that is NOT the same as 'I tell you this will happen!') is that other, bigger businesses which would loss energy sales and thus profit, will buy (things like) this and hold it back to protect their interests.
That's what I'm saying. If Exxon (the biggest of the big) came up with, or bought the rights to, a free-energy machine, do you really think they would just hold on to it? Or, would they try to sell the shit out of it, and crush their competitors in the process?
I just don't see how holding it back would make any sense at all, provided Exxon gives it even a moment's thought.
... and that's when the C.H.U.D.'s came at me.
I'm wondering what would happen to compost heaps after some time with this bacteria. Will they be still useful for growing plants with them, or will they become "de-energized"?
Your entire post is based on one very stupid assumption: That their plan is to just dump the bacteria in local mud and have it generate electricity. Of course, that's absurd. What they'll do is place the bacteria in a controlled environment, aka a fuel cell, and then pass the mud/waste water/etc through the fuel cell to produce electricity.
But, hey, don't let common sense stop you from coming to silly conclusions.
"No blood for poop!"
This joke is 100% recycled via humor-digesting bacteria.
The enemies of Democracy are
We'll be reduced to batteries for our robot overlords.
Ooooh. Interesting question! It binds iron and other metals, so that might make them more digestible, or less. Truely unclear.
(...) That their plan is to just dump the bacteria in local mud and have it generate electricity.
What I tried to point out is that further consideration is needed on whether the environment needs to prepared/sterilized, i.e. made noncompetitive in ecological sense for the bacteria to do their job. It's not naive, it's biotechnology 101.
(...) pass the mud/waste water/etc through the fuel cell to produce electricity.
As it comes to wastewater, it may be good idea, technology for doing that already exists. Mud is dense so mass transport would be extremely energy consuming.
They could hold it back as long as they have another cash-cow to milk empty first. But maybe you are right and they would become really big and filthy rich selling the machines. On the other hand, they could also use the machines themselves (no-one else could, they have the rights) to make energy for free and sell it to you and me for the prices we pay now and stay in business forever. :-)
It could go in all directions, but in the end, we will pay for our free energy. Upside is, of course, that this way of generating it is a lot more environment-friendly. And that IS nice, no matter who does it.
What person will donate an airborne act of love?
Dude, because they're totally like EVIL. Didn't you watch Captain Planet? They're total goal is to destroy the earth because they are BAD.
On the other hand, they could also use the machines themselves (no-one else could, they have the rights) to make energy for free and sell it to you and me for the prices we pay now and stay in business forever.
Not forever, just until their patent runs out. Or, if unpatented, until rediscovered by someone else (which would probably be a shorter time than a patent's length).
... and that's when the C.H.U.D.'s came at me.
now i just need a Delorean and a flux capacitor.
Damn, Jim. My communicator's out of power? Where's the bucket of muck?
There's just one parameter of interest-- how much power?
One suspects it's not a lot.
I can see biologists getting excited about picoamps and millivolts per square centimeter.
But as a practical source of electricity, that would be much less practical and economical than the lemon, penny, and nickel battery.
Even if they evolved to producing 1,000 times as much electricity, we could still be talking about nanoamps, millivolts, and picowatts.
Some technical info and photos: http://www.geobacter.org/publications/19487117/
No, Mr Poosion.
Not only that, Exxon or whoever could manufacture them to fail after a certain point in time causing the repurchase of the machines.
What I tried to point out is that further consideration is needed on whether the environment needs to prepared/sterilized, i.e. made noncompetitive in ecological sense for the bacteria to do their job. It's not naive, it's biotechnology 101.
The bacteria are never put in the "environment" at large. They're stored and cultured in their own little specialized environment designed specifically for them. As I already mentioned it's called a "fuel cell".
Honestly, your complaint is akin to someone claiming that bacteria can't possibly be used to produce insulin because the insulin would get all diluted in the ocean when they're released. ie, it's a gross misunderstanding of how the technology is meant to be used.
As it comes to wastewater, it may be good idea, technology for doing that already exists. Mud is dense so mass transport would be extremely energy consuming.
Transport? What? You use the mud that's nearby, in a local river or streambed. Remember, the idea is to use this in places like the third world. They aren't going to be piping mud around like crude oil.
Interesting this article might be, I am not sure if I am really comfortable putting batteries stuffed to the gills with shit in my notebook.
Perhaps they'd refine the stuff a little bit first?
I mean, the level of bacteria traditionally present in every student dorm - logical conclusion, no? No more power problems! :-)
Insert
They would be de-energized. But the nutrients would remain. Nutrients are the building blocks needed by photosynthetic organisms to build carbohydrates (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, etc). So de-energized compost piles would still be good places for plants to grow.
Devon
Trouble is, once free energy is out there in the wild, the entire world economy shuts down and becomes obsolete. The price of everything you pay for is governed by the amount of energy it took to create it. Whether that energy be the amount of food an engineer eats, or the cost of the energy required to extract metal from the earth, or the petrol it takes to distribute the product around. Once the cost of the energy required to create something is reduced to (or close to) zero, why would we still have money? Everything can be produce for free (as in beer), so who would pay for stuff?
We're in the middle of an interesting demonstration of this with the 'net, and the near zero per unit cost of replication and distribution. This means we get stuff like G-Mail, Linux, heck, even the Windows Live Suite, each of which has taken many thousands of man-hours to produce, and all this comes for free!
So, a free energy machine would not 'sell'. Or it might sell buckets, but that all money would be meaningless in no time at all.
NB this is why we should be investing a whole bunch of money in to things like ITER, cos if we can crack that, we aint gonna care about the cash it cost to get us there!
If medicine were ever perfected, we'd all be the same.
Fantastic. Now our mud pies will come out hot! Yum, yum.
Actually, many nutrients are only absorbed if they have a particular charge. Much of "chemistry" is electrical under the hood...