Harnessing the Sun: Insights into the Artificial Photosynthesis Market
Artificial photosynthesis is a chemical process that imitates natural photosynthesis to convert sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water into oxygen and carbohydrates. It is commonly referred to as a method for capturing and storing sunlight energy in the chemical bonds of solar fuel. Two key research areas in artificial photosynthesis are photocatalytic water splitting, which converts water into hydrogen and oxygen, and light-driven carbon dioxide reduction, replicating natural carbon fixation.
This approach shows promise in reducing greenhouse gas emissions by utilizing CO2 from factories and power plants as raw material for chemical products, while clean hydrogen produced from water using solar energy is employed.
There are three essential processes involved in artificial photosynthesis:
• Sunlight and a photocatalyst are used to split water into oxygen and hydrogen.
• A separation membrane is utilized to extract hydrogen from the mixed gas composed of hydrogen and oxygen.
• A catalyst facilitates a reaction between hydrogen and CO2, resulting in the production of olefin.
Increasing Use of Co-Electrolysis Technology
The increasing use of co-electrolysis technology is notable, as it allows the valorization of greenhouse gases using renewable energy sources to generate necessary syngas efficiently. This technology finds applications in manufacturing agricultural fertilizers, hydrogen production, and electricity production.
Moreover, integrated artificial photosynthesis integrates highly selective and productive CO2 electrolysis with high-efficiency solar energy to create optimal systems for carbon recycling. Contrasting with natural photosynthesis, this integrated system intents to achieve high efficiency of energy conversion from sunlight to hydrocarbon products, making use of the efficiency of photovoltaic cells and individual component design freedom, while also learning from natural photosynthesis' ability to produce high-value chemicals.
Furthermore, the utilization of photo-electrocatalysis technology is on the rise. This reliable approach combines heterogeneous photocatalysis with electrochemical techniques, allowing simultaneous illumination of a semiconductor unit with light momentum equal to or greater than its bandgap energy. This technique enables efficient light absorption and specific optimization of necessary molecules.
Additionally, the demand for hydrocarbons remains significantly high due to their effectiveness as substitutes for fossil fuels, especially in the production of hydrogen fuels for various applications.
With the increasing need for green hydrogen and eco-friendly liquid fuels, the rising economy along with per capita income, the surging number of companies, the growing rate of acceptance of technologies for renewable electricity production, the growing requirement for fuel, the growing requirement for ammonia from the agriculture sector, and the increasing government concern toward carbon emissions across the Asian countries, the requirement for artificial photosynthesis will continue to increase, reaching a value of USD 188.9 million by the end of this decade.