Dual carbon sequestration with photosynthetic living materials
Abstract Natural ecosystems efficiently sequester CO2 but containing and controlling living systems remains challenging. Here, we engineer a photosynthetic living material for dual CO2 sequestration that leverages biomass production and insoluble carbonate formation via microbially induced carbonate...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2025-04-01
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| Series: | Nature Communications |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-58761-y |
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| _version_ | 1850172323990077440 |
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| author | Dalia Dranseike Yifan Cui Andrea S. Ling Felix Donat Stéphane Bernhard Margherita Bernero Akhil Areeckal Marco Lazic Xiao-Hua Qin John S. Oakey Benjamin Dillenburger André R. Studart Mark W. Tibbitt |
| author_facet | Dalia Dranseike Yifan Cui Andrea S. Ling Felix Donat Stéphane Bernhard Margherita Bernero Akhil Areeckal Marco Lazic Xiao-Hua Qin John S. Oakey Benjamin Dillenburger André R. Studart Mark W. Tibbitt |
| author_sort | Dalia Dranseike |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Natural ecosystems efficiently sequester CO2 but containing and controlling living systems remains challenging. Here, we engineer a photosynthetic living material for dual CO2 sequestration that leverages biomass production and insoluble carbonate formation via microbially induced carbonate precipitation (MICP). To achieve this, we immobilize photosynthetic microorganisms within a printable polymeric network. Digital design and fabrication of the living structures ensure sufficient light access and nutrient supply to encapsulated cyanobacteria, enabling long-term culture for over a year. We showcase that photosynthetic living materials are able to sequester 2.2 ± 0.9 mg of CO2 per gram of hydrogel material over 30 days and 26 ± 7 mg of CO2 over 400 days. These findings highlight the potential of photosynthetic living materials for scalable, low-maintenance carbon sequestration with applications in carbon-neutral infrastructure and CO2 mitigation. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c8f097465cb1428b86c49f2ab7a8c317 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2041-1723 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nature Communications |
| spelling | doaj-art-c8f097465cb1428b86c49f2ab7a8c3172025-08-20T02:20:06ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232025-04-0116111310.1038/s41467-025-58761-yDual carbon sequestration with photosynthetic living materialsDalia Dranseike0Yifan Cui1Andrea S. Ling2Felix Donat3Stéphane Bernhard4Margherita Bernero5Akhil Areeckal6Marco Lazic7Xiao-Hua Qin8John S. Oakey9Benjamin Dillenburger10André R. Studart11Mark W. Tibbitt12Macromolecular Engineering Laboratory, Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering, ETH ZurichMacromolecular Engineering Laboratory, Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering, ETH ZurichDigital Building Technologies, Institute of Technology and Architecture, ETH ZurichLaboratory of Energy Science and Engineering, Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering, ETH ZurichMacromolecular Engineering Laboratory, Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering, ETH ZurichInstitute for Biomechanics, Department of Health Sciences and Technology, ETH ZurichMacromolecular Engineering Laboratory, Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering, ETH ZurichMacromolecular Engineering Laboratory, Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering, ETH ZurichInstitute for Biomechanics, Department of Health Sciences and Technology, ETH ZurichDepartment of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, University of WyomingDigital Building Technologies, Institute of Technology and Architecture, ETH ZurichComplex Materials, Department of Materials, ETH ZurichMacromolecular Engineering Laboratory, Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering, ETH ZurichAbstract Natural ecosystems efficiently sequester CO2 but containing and controlling living systems remains challenging. Here, we engineer a photosynthetic living material for dual CO2 sequestration that leverages biomass production and insoluble carbonate formation via microbially induced carbonate precipitation (MICP). To achieve this, we immobilize photosynthetic microorganisms within a printable polymeric network. Digital design and fabrication of the living structures ensure sufficient light access and nutrient supply to encapsulated cyanobacteria, enabling long-term culture for over a year. We showcase that photosynthetic living materials are able to sequester 2.2 ± 0.9 mg of CO2 per gram of hydrogel material over 30 days and 26 ± 7 mg of CO2 over 400 days. These findings highlight the potential of photosynthetic living materials for scalable, low-maintenance carbon sequestration with applications in carbon-neutral infrastructure and CO2 mitigation.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-58761-y |
| spellingShingle | Dalia Dranseike Yifan Cui Andrea S. Ling Felix Donat Stéphane Bernhard Margherita Bernero Akhil Areeckal Marco Lazic Xiao-Hua Qin John S. Oakey Benjamin Dillenburger André R. Studart Mark W. Tibbitt Dual carbon sequestration with photosynthetic living materials Nature Communications |
| title | Dual carbon sequestration with photosynthetic living materials |
| title_full | Dual carbon sequestration with photosynthetic living materials |
| title_fullStr | Dual carbon sequestration with photosynthetic living materials |
| title_full_unstemmed | Dual carbon sequestration with photosynthetic living materials |
| title_short | Dual carbon sequestration with photosynthetic living materials |
| title_sort | dual carbon sequestration with photosynthetic living materials |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-58761-y |
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