Carbon dioxide fixation by artificial photosynthesis
- National Inst. for Resources and Environment, AIST, MITI, Tsukuba, Ibaraki (Japan)
Green plants can absorb atmospheric CO{sub 2} and transform it to sugars, carbohydrates through their photosynthetic systems, but they become the source of CO{sub 2} when they are dead. This is the reason why artificial leaves which can be alive forever should be developed to meet with global warming due to the increase of CO{sub 2} concentration. The goal of artificial photosynthesis is not to construct the same system as the photosynthetic one, but to mimic the ability of green plants to utilize solar energy to make high energy chemicals. Needless to say, the artificial photosynthetic system is desired to be as simple as possible and to be as efficient as possible. From the knowledge on photosynthesis and the results of previous investigations, the critical components of artificial photosynthetic system are understood as follows: (1) light harvesting chromophore, (2) a center for electron transfer and charge separation, (3) catalytic sites for converting small molecules like water and CO{sub 2} (mutilelectron reactions) which are schematically described.
- Research Organization:
- National Science Foundation, Washington, DC (United States). Committee on Earth and Environmental Sciences
- OSTI ID:
- 249747
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-930285--; ON: DE96008736
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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