Proceedings of 6th International Conference on Hybrid and Organic Photovoltaics (HOPV14)
Publication date: 1st March 2014
I propose useage of the energy from the sun in a two-stage process. First,benefitting from the given life-based abilities of organisms to harness solar energy to create fuel, and second, employing this fuel to feed microbial electricity-producing cells.
1. Benefitting from the given life-based abilities of organisms to harness solar energy to create fuel: Life forms which can harness light energy in photosynthetic processes are a given. Plants and diverse microbes are able to harness solar energy to create fuel : carbon dioxide + water + light energy -> carbohydrate. The input of energy allows the creation of greater order from more chaotic matter. In turn this more ordered matter can be employed to release energy when it is returned to less ordered forms. This is in accordance with the Laws of Thermodynamics. The matter produced from photosynthetic processes could be employed to produce electricity.
2. Employing matter produced via photosynthesis to feed microbial electricity-producing cells. Matter produced via photosynthesis and waste from such matter could be employed as nutrition, possibly after eco-friendly processing e.g., fermentation, to produce media, to feed microbes in electricity-producing cells. Some microbes, e.g., Bacteroidia, produce negativity based upon their metabolic processes which allow them to live. In electricity-generating cells,of appropriate scale, such microbes could be fed media produced from waste, based on matter produced from photosynthesis perhaps destined for recycling, In such a cell the negativity could transfer to an anode. This would promote the flow of current from such anode(s) into an electricity requiring system, feeding electricity needs from lighting, heating, cooling, and washing, to transport. in a smooth controlled release programme to minimise energy waste. Cells could be designed for maximum electricity generation and minimum waste, perhaps involving larger cells for some applications and perhaps many small cells combined to provide energy for other applications.
Thus harnessing given photosynthetic processes could fuel electricity-producing cells based on given microbial processes, in order to generate electricity to help meet world energy needs and energy security for all.
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