Influence of Magnetic Fields on Electrochemical Reactions of Redox Cofactor Solutions

Redox cofactors mediate many enzymatic processes and are increasingly employed in biomedical and energy applications. Exploring the influence of external magnetic fields on redox cofactor chemistry can enhance our understanding of magnetic‐field‐sensitive biological processes and allow the application of magnetic fields to modulate redox reactions involving cofactors. Through a combination of experiments and modeling, we investigate the influence of magnetic fields on electrochemical reactions in redox cofactor solutions. By employing flavin mononucleotide (FMN) cofactor as a model system, we characterize magnetically induced changes in Faradaic currents. We find that radical pair intermediates have negligible influence on current increases in FMN solution upon application of a magnetic field. The dominant mechanism underlying the observed current increases is the magneto‐hydrodynamic effect. We extend our analyses to other diffusion‐limited electrochemical reactions of redox cofactor solutions and arrive at similar conclusions, highlighting the opportunity to use this framework in redox cofactor chemistry. Through a combination of experimental and theoretical approaches the underlying mechanism of magnetic‐field‐driven enhancement of Faradaic currents in solutions of redox cofactors, such as flavin mononucleotide, was investigated. The findings reveal that a magneto‐hydrodynamic effect rather than radical pair mechanism is responsible for the observed current enhancement.