Investigators: Jonathan De Oliveira (History), Jeremie Joannes (Aerospace Engineering)

This project was funded by the Cabot Institute Innovation Fund to the value of £1000

Project descriptor:

Nitrogen oxide gases (NOx) are known to cause and exacerbate common respiratory conditions, and combine with other pollutants to form harmful particulate matter and street-level ozone. Since the introduction of catalytic converters to reduce NOx production by cars, efforts to further reduce NOx in streets appear limited. However, a February 2017 study showed that air pollution is responsible for 300 deaths per year in Bristol alone.

Therefore, inspired by the ‘Let Bristol Breathe’ campaign, and recent local and national media attention focusing upon air pollution and its damaging effects, we are developing a novel method for removing airborne nitrogen oxide gases using genetically engineered bacteria. The bacteria would be placed securely in pods, which could for example be located around roads with high pollution levels, or in factories to capture NOx emissions from industrial processes at source. Moreover, our bacteria would form the useful product of ammonia, and we plan to incorporate a Microbial Fuel Cell into each pod, which would use this ammonia to generate green electricity.

Our expected outcomes of this project are: proof of concept with a NOx-removing prototype bio-pod, education of the public regarding behavioural reduction of pollution and engagement with the public on the ethics surrounding placing genetically engineered materials around the city.

The project is named Bristol BREATHE (BioReactor to Eliminate Atmospheric Threats to Health and the Environment), and will compete with other synthetic biology projects from around the globe in the prestigious international Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) competition.