Abstract
Corals have evolved as optimized photon augmentation systems, leading to space-efficient microalgal growth and outstanding photosynthetic quantum efficiencies. Light attenuation due to algal self-shading is a key limiting factor for the upscaling of microalgal cultivation. Coral-inspired light management systems could overcome this limitation and facilitate scalable bioenergy and bioproduct generation. Here, we develop 3D printed bionic corals capable of growing microalgae with high spatial cell densities of up to 109 cells mL−1. The hybrid photosynthetic biomaterials are produced with a 3D bioprinting platform which mimics morphological features of living coral tissue and the underlying skeleton with micron resolution, including their optical and mechanical properties. The programmable synthetic microenvironment thus allows for replicating both structural and functional traits of the coral-algal symbiosis. Our work defines a class of bionic materials that is capable of interacting with living organisms and can be exploited for applied coral reef research and photobioreactor design.
Highlights
Corals have evolved as optimized photon augmentation systems, leading to space-efficient microalgal growth and outstanding photosynthetic quantum efficiencies
Motivated by the optimized light management of corals, we have developed a bioprinting platform capable of 3D printing living photosynthetic matter mimicking coral tissue and skeleton source geometries
Our bioprinting platform is capable of 3D printing optically-tunable photosynthetic material that mimics coral tissue and skeleton morphology with micron-scale precision (Fig. 1a–g)
Summary
Corals have evolved as optimized photon augmentation systems, leading to space-efficient microalgal growth and outstanding photosynthetic quantum efficiencies. Our bionic coral increases the photon residence time as light travels through the algal culture (Fig. 2e). As photons travel through the bionic coral, diffuse scattering by the bionic skeleton leads to an increasingly diffuse light field, effectively increasing the scalar irradiance (i.e., the integral of the radiance distribution from all directions around a point) as a function of tissue depth[4] (Fig. 2i, Supplementary Fig. 3).
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
