Scientists have taught mushrooms to generate electricity.
Solar panels are widely used to convert light into electricity. However, researchers are developing alternative ways of obtaining energy, one of them is to use living organisms as a "power plant". A group of scientists from Stevens University of Technology (New Jersey, USA) has developed a technology for generating electricity using mushrooms. They used store-bought mushrooms, but basically any mushroom you find in the forest will do.
The fact is that in laboratory conditions, experiments with generating electricity using cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) are quite successful. These bacteria are able to convert light into energy through photosynthesis. But it was not possible to create a market technology on this basis, because in artificial conditions it is difficult to maintain the viability of cyanobacteria for a long time. However, thanks to the symbiotic ability of fungi, scientists have managed to create a fairly effective hybrid system. Champignon caps turned out to be a convenient habitat for cyanobacteria - the fungi supplied the bacteria with nutrients and water. It remained to create a system for removing the current from the surface of the mushroom. American experts have found a way out.
Using a special 3D printer, they entangled the mushrooms with a graphene mesh. It is the thinnest material in the world, and consists of a layer of carbon one atom thick. Then the pundits put a layer of cyanobacteria on the mushrooms surface - and the "Ilyich's lamp" lit up! In daylight, bacteria produce an electrical current of 65 nanoamperes. It's a tiny figure, but scientists say biohybrid cars have a huge future. A small colony of mushrooms will be able to provide lighting for a summer cottage. Other bacteria can be used to make fuel or as a sensor to detect air pollution.
YAROSLAV KOROBATOV