Mediatorless solar energy conversion by covalently bonded thylakoid monolayer on the glassy carbon electrode

• Partial or full monolayers of carboxyphenyl groups were formed on a GC.
• A method for covalently immobilizing a thylakoid membrane on the GC was developed.
• Solar energy conversion to electricity was achieved by thylakoid without mediators.
• The effect of surface modification methods on the photocurrent was examined.

Light reactions of photosynthesis that take place in thylakoid membranes found in plants or cyanobacteria are among the most effective ways of utilizing light. Unlike most researches that use photosystem I or photosystem II as conversion units for converting light to electricity, we have developed a simple method in which the thylakoid monolayer was covalently immobilized on the glassy carbon electrode surface. The activity of isolated thylakoid membrane was confirmed by measuring evolving oxygen under illumination. Glassy carbon surfaces were first modified with partial or full monolayers of carboxyphenyl groups by reductive C–C coupling using 4-aminobenzoic acid and aniline and then thylakoid membrane was bioconjugated through the peptide bond between amine residues of thylakoid and carboxyl groups on the surface. Surface properties of modified surfaces were characterized by cyclic voltammetry, contact angle measurements, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Photocurrent of 230 nA cm− 2 was observed when the thylakoid monolayer was formed on the mixed monolayer of 4-carboxylpheny and benzene at applied potential of 0.4 V vs. Ag/AgCl. A small photocurrent resulted when the 4-carboxyphenyl full monolayer was used. This work shows the possibility of solar energy conversion by directly employing the whole thylakoid membrane through simple surface modification.

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