Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Blankenship, Robert E.
• Tiede, David M.
• Barber, James
• Brudvig, Gary W.
• Fleming, Graham
• Ghirardi, Maria
• Gunner, M. R.
• Junge, Wolfgang
• Kramer, David M.
• Melis, Anastasios
• Moore, Thomas A.
• Moser, Christopher C.
• Nocera, Daniel G.
• Nozik, Arthur J.
• Ort, Donald R.
• Parson, William W.
• Prince, Roger C.
• Sayre, Richard T.

Titel

Comparing Photosynthetic and Photovoltaic Efficiencies and Recognizing the Potential for Improvement

Ist Teil von

• Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science), 2011-05, Vol.332 (6031), p.805-809

Ort / Verlag

Washington, DC: American Association for the Advancement of Science

Erscheinungsjahr

2011

Quelle

MEDLINE

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• Comparing photosynthetic and photovoltaic efficiencies is not a simple issue. Although both processes harvest the energy in sunlight, they operate in distinctly different ways and produce different types of products: biomass or chemical fuels in the case of natural photosynthesis and nonstored electrical current in the case of photovoltaics. In order to find common ground for evaluating energy-conversion efficiency, we compare natural photosynthesis with present technologies for photovoltaic-driven electrolysis of water to produce hydrogen. Photovoltaic-driven electrolysis is the more efficient process when measured on an annual basis, yet short-term yields for photosynthetic conversion under optimal conditions come within a factor of 2 or 3 of the photovoltaic benchmark. We consider opportunities in which the frontiers of synthetic biology might be used to enhance natural photosynthesis for improved solar energy conversion efficiency.