The official launch of the BioSolar Cells research program that took place in Wageningen, Netherlands on 17th June opened with a seminar on ‘Solar power for the BioBased Economy’.
This national program on BioSolar Cells will run for five years to reinforce the scientific basis for eco-friendly manufacture of food and bio-energy and using the photo-synthesis process efficiently.
The program will have participation from 25 industrial partners and 9 knowledge institutes and will get € 42 million as grant from the business community, knowledge institutes, the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research, Agricultural and Innovation and Ministry of Economic Affairs.
BioSolar Cells manages approximately 50 research projects in finding methods to formulate and use the naturally occurring photosynthesis process in micro organisms and plants. Presently, the research members in the program are researching about photosynthesis in order to increase its effectiveness in micro-organisms and plants and in synthetic systems such as artificial leaves and combining both of them. The photosynthesis happens at the plant, molecular systems and cell level in algae and bacteria.
The research is anticipated to offer a foundation for introducing inexpensive photo-biological cells that are capable of generating biomass in large quantities in a short duration or other fuels such as methanol and hydrogen gas.
Source: http://www.biosolarcells.nl/UK