Formation mechanism of thermally controlled pH gradients

Abstract

Cells use pH gradients to drive the synthesis of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), but the physicochemical mechanisms that can produce pH gradients in non-equilibrium settings are poorly understood. The authors here theoretically and experimentally investigate the formation of a pH gradient in an acid-base reaction system, driven by a heat flow, providing insights on how crude non-equilibrium systems can feed chemical gradients exploitable by life.