\”Bioluminescent city panels\” by Jae-Seong Yang, image/information source: CRAG
The Bioluminescent Pavilion Lighting (bacteria-based) refers to an experimental design concept and ongoing research project aimed at creating self-sufficient, passive urban lighting using living organisms.
Project: BioLumCity
This initiative is a collaboration between the Centre for Research in Agricultural Genomics (CRAG) and the International University of Catalonia (UIC), co-led by Jae-Seong Yang and Alberto T. Estévez.
- Core Concept: The project aims to replace electric urban lighting with \”living light\” (bioluminescence) to reduce energy consumption and light pollution. It involves designing architectural elements—such as pavilions, urban screens, and streetlamps—that host bioluminescent microorganisms.
- Biological Agent: The research focuses on Aliivibrio fischeri, a naturally bioluminescent marine bacterium.
- Mechanism: These bacteria emit blue-green light (~490 nm) through a chemical reaction involving the enzyme luciferase. This is a form of chemiluminescence that does not require light absorption to emit light (unlike fluorescence).
- Application: The bacteria are cultured in a \”bioink\” and seeded onto customized 3D-printed scaffolds (tiles). The design of these tiles features a specific \”field-diffusion pattern\” with peaks and wells to optimize bacterial attachment, oxygen access, and light visibility.
- Pavilion Integration: The sources mention the development of 3D-printed urban tiles that function as \”bioreceptive\” screens. These tiles can be assembled into larger structures, such as pavilions or facades.
- Performance: In experiments, the bacterial bioink on the 3D-printed scaffolds emitted visible light for up to 10 days without needing a nutrient recharge.
- Enclosure: To be viable in an urban environment, these bacterial cultures would be enclosed within architectural elements (e.g., using ion-exchange membranes or dense polycarbonate) to protect the colony while allowing light to escape.
Other Bacterial Bioluminescence Concepts
The sources also briefly mention a project by Panasonic called \”BioLight\”, which similarly investigates the use of luminescent bacteria to create \”bioreceptive\” pavilions and furniture, though fewer details are provided compared to the BioLumCity project.
Future Goals
While the current focus is on bacteria for their natural light-emitting properties, the BioLumCity project is also researching the genetic modification of microalgae (Chlamydomonas reinhardtii) to create organisms that are both bioluminescent and photosynthetic. This would create a system that illuminates cities at night while actively capturing CO2 during the day.
