The Digg.com headlines for today include research about bacterium that produces electricity by consuming sugar. The Escherichia coli bacteria actually excrete hydrogen after consuming sugar. An electric fuel cell is then powered by the hydrogen.

The team fed Escherichia coli bacteria diluted caramel and nougat waste. The bacteria consumed the sugar and produced hydrogen, which they make with the enzyme hydrogenase, and organic acids. The researchers then used this hydrogen to power a fuel cell, which generated enough electricity to drive a small fan.

They are also using the bacteria to recover palladium metal from the spent catalytic converters of older vehicles.