Molecular insights and future frontiers in cell photosensitization for solar-driven CO2 conversion

iScience

Nicholas George Watanabe¹  Rachel Rebecca Chan¹  Peidong Yang²  Stefano Cestellos-Blanco²  Ji Min Kim² 

[1] Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA;Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA;

关键词: microbiology;    global carbon cycle;    energy engineering;    nanomaterials;   

DOI  :  

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Summary: The conversion of CO2 to value-added products powered with solar energy is an ideal solution to establishing a closed carbon cycle. Combining microorganisms with light-harvesting nanomaterials into photosynthetic biohybrid systems (PBSs) presents an approach to reaching this solution. Metabolic pathways precisely evolved for CO2 fixation selectively and reliably generate products. Nanomaterials harvest solar light and biocompatibly associate with microorganisms owing to similar lengths scales. Although this is a nascent field, a variety of approaches have been implemented encompassing different microorganisms and nanomaterials. To advance the field in an impactful manner, it is paramount to understand the molecular underpinnings of PBSs. In this perspective, we highlight studies inspecting charge uptake pathways and singularities in photosensitized cells. We discuss further analyses to more completely elucidate these constructs, and we focus on criteria to be met for designing photosensitizing nanomaterials. As a result, we advocate for the pairing of microorganisms with naturally occurring and highly biocompatible mineral-based semiconductor nanomaterials.

【 授权许可】

Unknown