Bottom-up chemical construction of photosynthetic cyanobacteria mimics and their controlled assembly into autonomous and self-regulating biofilm-like materials for hydrogen production

Broad interest is devoted nowadays to filling the breach between biology and chemistry in order to comprehend the frontier between living and non-living systems. In this context, protocells are independent entities prepared ab-initio and exhibiting one or more characteristics of actual cells. This project aims at synthesizing cyanobacteria mimics capable of producing H2 and formaldehyde from visible light, water, and methanol. The active material for photosynthesis shall be a semiconducting heterojunction based on BiVO4 and Rh-doped SrTiO3-Pt for Z-scheme photocatalysis. The photocatalyst shall be contained within functional protein-polymer protocell membranes referred to as proteinosomes. The most ambitious goal of this project is to assemble the cyanobacteria mimics into biofilm-like materials that will produce H2 and formaldehyde continuously and autonomously. This Protocellular Material (PCM) shall be a complex and interconnected 3D network of protocell consortia linked via strain-promoted alkyne-azide 1,3 dipolar cycloaddition. The PCM shall be conferred with mechanical properties by using polymer- based cytoskeletons which are able to swell upon illumination reversibly. The specific design of the PCM will be therefore endowed with mechano-photochemical transduction capabilities in order to regulate photon uptake, protect the photosynthetic protocells from photobleaching, and maximize H2 production and storage stability of the material.

Broad interest is devoted nowadays to filling the breach between biology and chemistry in order to comprehend the frontier between living and non-living systems. In this context, protocells are independent entities prepared ab-initio and exhibiting one or more characteristics of actual cells. This project aims at synthesizing cyanobacteria mimics capable of producing H2 and formaldehyde from visible light, water, and methanol. The active material for photosynthesis shall be a semiconducting heterojunction based on BiVO4 and Rh-doped SrTiO3-Pt for Z-scheme photocatalysis. The photocatalyst shall be contained within functional protein-polymer protocell membranes referred to as proteinosomes. The most ambitious goal of this project is to assemble the cyanobacteria mimics into biofilm-like materials that will produce H2 and formaldehyde continuously and autonomously. This Protocellular Material (PCM) shall be a complex and interconnected 3D network of protocell consortia linked via strain-promoted alkyne-azide 1,3 dipolar cycloaddition. The PCM shall be conferred with mechanical properties by using polymer- based cytoskeletons which are able to swell upon illumination reversibly. The specific design of the PCM will be therefore endowed with mechano-photochemical transduction capabilities in order to regulate photon uptake, protect the photosynthetic protocells from photobleaching, and maximize H2 production and storage stability of the material.