The Power of Plant Cells

Mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell and so are... well, chlorophyll. Scientists have decided its power needs to be harvested. That's right, scientists have decided we need to harness the power of "the cell" and now here we are in 2022 with synthetic photosynthesis.

What is photosynthesis? If you remember your high school biology courses, you'll remember that photosynthesis is the process by which plants produce energy using water, carbon dioxide, and the sun. Essentially, plants use photosynthesis to feed themselves and if they lack any of the inputs, they are unable to make the outputs and will die. This is why it is important to pay attention to the amount of water and light your plant needs and why they don't thrive well in plastic bags by themselves.

Scientists have come up with an artificial version of photosynthesis that is apparently significantly more efficient than the process plants use. Keep in mind, plants produce enough energy to survive, so it's not exactly surprising that scientists were able to take the process to the next level. So, what's so special about artificial photosynthesis? The artificial method does the same thing, except it turns carbon dioxide and water into methane and ethanol; both are energy dense fuels that a lot of us use or encounter daily.

What is the significance of this development? Maybe we could stop using liquid dinosaurs to fuel things like cars and could even provide power to homes or cities if produced in a large enough quantity. Of course, this is hypothetical in the event that artificial photosynthesis is perfected and efficient enough to produce both methane and ethanol on a large scale without impurities. It doesn't quite eliminate the need for liquid dinosaurs to produce other things like plastics and clothing (polyester is also plastic). In addition, the process of creating methane and ethanol this way has a lesser impact on the environment as the output isn't going to be detrimental to the environment.

Still, combustion of ethanol and methane would lead to the production of greenhouse gasses, so while the production is "green" the consumption of these two fuel sources is still not. For that, hydrogen-based fuel sources would be best, but that's easier said than done as the correct result is not easy to produce.

We may have oversimplified how difficult this is with our previous statement about how plants produce energy in order to survive and it's not surprising that scientists have enhanced it. To be clear, this is not a new effort- researchers have been attempting to "hijack" photosynthesis to create different desired compounds for years. Photosynthesis is not a linear, "point A" to "point B" sort of process. The right ratios of the inputs must be present and if something is off and the breakdown of the inputs isn't correct, the second step of building the desired outputs will not be possible. It's amazing we can do all this and still do not have a complete understanding of the relationship between hormones and their receptors.

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