Bio-catalyzed CO₂ sequestration

The hydration of CO₂ suffers from kinetic inefficiencies that make the natural mineral and solubility trapping of gaseous CO₂ impractically sluggish. However, CO₂-fixing carbonic anhydrases remarkably accelerate the equilibration of bicarbonate and CO₂ by six orders of magnitude and are therefore ‘ideal’ catalysts. Notably, carbonic anhydrase has been detected in ureolytic bacteria, suggesting its potential involvement in MICP. We are interested in understand the dynamics between urease and carbonic anhydrase for the development of next-generation bio-catalyzed CO₂ sequestration technologies.

Ennaciri, A.; Clarà Saracho, A.; Marek, E. Bacteria-Induced Mineralisation for Enhanced Removal of CO2. 2nd International Conference on Negative CO2 Emissions 2022. https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.89486.