U.S. scientists have reported the first fully integrated nanosystem for artificial photosynthesis. Well done!
This schematic shows TiO2 nanowires (blue) grown on the upper half of a Si nanowire (gray) & the two absorbing different regions of the solar spectrum. Insets display photoexcited electron hole pairs separated at the semiconductor-electrolyte interface to carry out water splitting with the help of co-catalysts (yellow and gray dots).
I wonder how efficient it is relative to biological photosynthesis.
ReplyDeleteI wonder what the net chemical equation is ... what happens to the carbon?
The simplest and most useful would be:
CO2 + 2*H2O >>> CH4 + 2*O2
Because then we could use the process to convert carbon dioxide to methane, which could be used in closed loop with the methane combustion reaction, which is the reverse of the above:
CH4 + 2*O2 >>> CO2 +2*H2O
That could go a long way to solving energy and pollution problems!
David Chako Well is good to have a backup plan...but nothing like mother nature ;)
ReplyDeleteAt least this is my opinion..
Corina Marinescu By that logic, Orville and Wilbur Wright ought not to have tried making flying machines, because birds already did that so well. And since the jelly fish has jet propulsion, what business did humans have creating jet airplanes, which use the same principle but vastly increases the scale?
ReplyDeleteIn fact, the history of human invention is a story of humans using the principles discovered by observing nature, and then creating devices which optimize the use of those principles in some fashion that generates economy for humans.
"Nature, to be commanded, must be obeyed." -- Frank Bacon
David, what I said has nothing to do with inventions or future of humanity...so u should smile and take ur happy pill this morning, after all we should be thankful to mother nature that we are not snacks for the raptors ;)
ReplyDeleteMy point is: I bet dollars to donuts that humans will eventually improve upon photosynthesis.
ReplyDeleteAnd I am not unhappy, just serious. ;)
ReplyDeleteSerious is good just keep in mind that I'm a woman and I'm impatient so please compress ur info, danke :)
ReplyDeleteNow why would you be impatient, dear? Mathematics cannot salve the savage beast ... ;)
ReplyDeletereally don't know?
ReplyDeletethe wave length must be smaller then the dimension of substance molecules .
to get able to transduce over next side .