Projektnummer

0058012

Zusammenfassung

Can organisms generate energy in a thermal gradient? If such a process exists, it would drastically change our view on the biosphere. We would also be able to learn from this biological system how to generate "higher" (electrical, chemical, mechanical) energy from heat in order to develop novel thermoelectric generators. The aim of this study is to prove that biological thermosynthesis exists. The applicants will recreate conditions in the lab under which Pyrodictium and other organisms grow around hydrothermal vents.