Light-driven nitrous oxide production via autotrophic denitrification by self-photosensitized Thiobacillus denitrificans

N₂O (Nitrous oxide, a booster oxidant in rockets) has attracted increasing interest as a means of enhancing energy production, and it can be produced by nitrate (NO₃⁻) reduction in NO₃⁻-loading wastewater. However, conventional denitrification processes are often limited by the lack of bioavailable electron donors. In this study, we innovatively propose a self-photosensitized nonphototrophic Thiobacillus denitrificans (T. denitrificans-CdS) that is capable of NO₃⁻ reduction and N₂O production driven by light. The system converted >72.1 ± 1.1% of the NO₃⁻-N input to N₂O[sbnd]N, and the ratio of N₂O-N in gaseous products was >96.4 ± 0.4%. The relative transcript abundance of the genes encoding the denitrifying proteins in T. denitrificans-CdS after irradiation was significantly upregulated. The photoexcited electrons acted as the dominant electron sources for NO₃⁻ reduction by T. denitrificans-CdS. This study provides the first proof of concept for sustainable and low-cost autotrophic denitrification to generate N₂O driven by light. The findings also have strong implications for sustainable environmental management because the sunlight-triggered denitrification reaction driven by nonphototrophic microorganisms may widely occur in nature, particularly in a semiconductive mineral-enriched aqueous environment.