Energy shortage is one of the most critical sustainability challenges that we face today. The emerging solutions are not without their own problems. For example, hydrogen or solar cells have their respective negative environmental footprints. Moreover, food production on earth has never really evolved to replace of supplement traditional agriculture. On the other hand, nature has been producing food and energy silently in a massive scale since forever. Replicating and tweaking photosynthesis and respiration can provide the ultimate sustainable source but the options are limited by costly material choices.

Nature is an abundant source of sunlight, carbon-di-oxide (natural plus man-made) and water; the necessary ingredients of food. When utilized in an artificial photosynthesis arrangement, they can produce huge amount of glucose, the simplest form of carbohydrate that is highly energy dense molecule. As a byproduct of the process oxygen is released. Glucose thus produced can serve an excellent dual role for food and subsequent energy generation. This is the ultimate possible sustainability.

The system consists of three modules, namely 1) a Fuel Generator (artificial plant cell), 2) a glucose storage and 3) an Energy Converter. The modules are portable and can be taken to places of use on demand. Module 1 takes water and carbon-di-oxide from its designated source (can use waste from other sources). Using sunlight and photocatalysts the raw materials are first converted to formaldehyde, followed by glucose. Module 2 stores glucose by means of non-biological storage options. Module 3 is a fuel cell that efficiently extracts the high amount of energy from glucose molecules. This fuel cell is similar to microbial fuel cells but rather utilizes engineered materials. All the catalytic materials shall be variations of one engineered multi-function material – here named as “Glures Particles”. All modules together, a system – “Glures Factory” – is formed.

This product envisages use of “Glures Particles” sourced from cheap and abundant resources, for three distinct applications in the system – as a photocatalyst, as a storage and as chemical destabilizer for the fuel cell. This is the primary novelty our product brings to the table.

The solution is intended for domestic, utility, space, transport and remote applications. 

Since the solution can be used for any application that requires electric energy, the potential is enormous. However, it may not be suitable for highly energy dense applications, definitely in the early days.

The key component to this solution is a suitable multi-function engineered material, while the rest of the components can be manufactured by the known methods as such applications are attempted by research organizations. Therefore, attention should be paid to the material synthesis only. The material shall be synthesized from commonly available materials like soil, salt, plant waste etc. through customized processes.

By avoiding costly and rare materials, fundamentally this idea will make artificial photosynthesis and subsequent energy generation affordable compared to the known options today.