Genetic Control of Aerogel and Nanofoam Properties, Applied to Ni-MnOx Cathode Design

Aerogels are ultralight porous materials whose matrix structure can be formed by interlinking 880 nm long M13 phage particles. In theory, changing the phage properties would alter the aerogel matrix, but attempting this using the current production system leads to heterogeneous lengths. A phagemid system that yields a narrow length distribution that can be tuned in 0.3 nm increments from 50 to 2500 nm is designed and, independently, the persistence length varies from 14 to 68 nm by mutating the coat protein. A robotic workflow that automates each step from DNA construction to aerogel synthesis is used to build 1200 aerogels. This is applied to compare Ni-MnOx cathodes built using different matrixes, revealing a pareto-optimal relationship between performance metrics. This work demonstrates the application of genetic engineering to create tuning knobs to sweep through material parameter space; in this case, toward creating a physically strong and high-capacity battery.

Automated summary

This study introduces a new phagemid system that can produce M13 phage particles with a narrow length distribution that can be adjusted in increments of 0.3 nm, as well as variation in persistence length through coat protein mutation. A robotic workflow is used to produce a large number of aerogels for performance comparison, revealing a Pareto-optimal relationship. This work demonstrates the potential application of genetic engineering in material design.