Am I wrong to suspect that genetically engineered microbes could be a boon for fuel or fertilizer on the order of the Haber process? Does anybody know better than I how far along we are on this path?
What kind of engineering? Algae are pretty darn good at carbon fixation especially in optimized conditions, though there are people trying to muck with land plants to put the more efficient C4 carbon fixation pathway in economically important plants. There are methanotrophs that will turn methane into biomass with high efficiency, and recently discovered bacteria that will take electrical current and use it to power their metabolisms.
As for fertilizer, I mean, genetic modification doesn’t move elements around, but if you have another idea I’m all ears!
Am I wrong to suspect that genetically engineered microbes could be a boon for fuel or fertilizer on the order of the Haber process? Does anybody know better than I how far along we are on this path?
What kind of engineering? Algae are pretty darn good at carbon fixation especially in optimized conditions, though there are people trying to muck with land plants to put the more efficient C4 carbon fixation pathway in economically important plants. There are methanotrophs that will turn methane into biomass with high efficiency, and recently discovered bacteria that will take electrical current and use it to power their metabolisms.
As for fertilizer, I mean, genetic modification doesn’t move elements around, but if you have another idea I’m all ears!
wait, what am I missing? bacteria already fix nitrogen.
Point well taken, I was thinking more in terms of industrial scale rather than making something that is more broadly applicable at small scales.
I know there are some folks working on mycorhizae that will fix nitrogen for plant families other than the pea.