AI Article Synopsis
- Electrolysis of water connects electrical energy to hydrogen, a potent fuel, but current methods are costly and inefficient.
- Researchers have discovered that laccase, an enzyme, can catalyze the conversion of water to oxygen, presenting a more efficient alternative.
- This innovation could significantly advance water splitting research by addressing the shortcomings of existing synthetic electrocatalysts.
Article Abstract
The electrolysis of water provides a link between electrical energy and hydrogen, a high energy density fuel and a versatile energy carrier, but the process is very expensive. Indeed, the main challenge is to reduce energy consumption for large-scale applications using efficient renewable catalysts that can be produced at low cost. Here we present for the first time that laccase can catalyze electrooxidation of H2O to molecular oxygen. Native and laboratory-evolved laccases immobilized onto electrodes serve as bioelectrocatalytic systems with low overpotential and a high O2 evolution ratio against H2O2 production during H2O electrolysis. Our results open new research ground on H2O splitting, as they overcome serious practical limitations associated with artificial electrocatalysts currently used for O2 evolution.
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| http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/ja502044j | DOI Listing |
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