Currently, hydrogen gas is produced in a very complex industrial process and bio enzymes could be an alternative source of energy. This makes them more attractive for the environmentally friendly fuels market, according to the researchers. In response, scientists are looking for biologically synthesized hydrogen, which is far more efficient to produce than the current human-made process. This is what chemistry professor and study co-author Thomas Rauchfuss said.
Using organic enzymes for industrial fuels
Bio enzymes, or the so-called hydrogenases, are the machines of theNature for productionand combustion of hydrogen gas. These enzymes come in two varieties: iron-iron and nickel-iron, named after the elements responsible for the chemical reactions. So the new study focuses primarily on the first variety because it gets the job done faster, the researchers claim.
The team came into the study with a general understanding of the chemical composition of the active sites within the enzyme. They hypothesized that the sites were composed of 10 parts: four molecules of carbon monoxide, two cyanide ions, two iron ions and two groups of a sulfur-containing amino acid called cysteine.
The team also found that the enzyme's engine was more likely to consist of two identical groups of five chemicals. These were two carbon monoxide molecules, a cyanide ion, an iron ion and a cysteine group. The groups thus form a firmly connected unit and the two units together make 10 parts for the engine. However, analysis of the enzyme synthesized in the laboratory revealed one final surprise, Rauchfuß said. “Our recipe is incomplete. We now know that 11 parts are required to create the active drive. We’re looking for that one last bit.”
Future perspective
So team members aren't sure what kind of applications this new understanding of bioenzymes will lead to. However, research may provide a link forother catalyst projects helpfulwill be.
“The takeaway from this study is that it is one thing to imagine using the real enzyme to produce hydrogen gas, but it is far more powerful to understand its makeup well enough to reproduce it for use in the laboratory “to be able to do that,” says Rauchfuss. Researchers at Oregon Health and Science University also contributed to this study.
You can find the article about the studyhere.
