Photo: New Scientist
Good news petrol-heads! Looks like the future of gasoline-powered engines won’t be limited to the underground black-gold deposits. Some scientists managed to make an almost identical chemical compound to gasoline from genetically modified bacteria.
Even though fuel similar to gasoline was obtained from bacteria in the past, it was never a good option, as engines were clogging up by premature gum deposits on their components.
John Love, scientist at the University of Exeter, UK, managed to create a strain of E. coli bacteria that can create gasoline claimed to be structurally identical to the one found at your average gas-pump. The bacteria were fed with glucose from plant matter, the end result being the precious gasoline compound.
The scientists now have to figure how to make the process work on a massive scale. One of the next steps will be to alter the bacteria to feed on a cheaper and less impactful material, like animal dung. A research arm of the Shell oil company heard of the new breakthrough and is funding the studies already, so there is a big chance of filling up our tanks in the future with bacteria recycled dung. Hope it won’t smell like a stable.
Source: New Scientist
John Love, scientist at the University of Exeter, UK, managed to create a strain of E. coli bacteria that can create gasoline claimed to be structurally identical to the one found at your average gas-pump. The bacteria were fed with glucose from plant matter, the end result being the precious gasoline compound.
The scientists now have to figure how to make the process work on a massive scale. One of the next steps will be to alter the bacteria to feed on a cheaper and less impactful material, like animal dung. A research arm of the Shell oil company heard of the new breakthrough and is funding the studies already, so there is a big chance of filling up our tanks in the future with bacteria recycled dung. Hope it won’t smell like a stable.
Source: New Scientist
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