Bacterial Energy Research Can Help Us Create Renewable Energy

Efficient conversion of the sun’s energy into human usage will be crucial to maintaining clean energy. Researchers are spending time looking into the photosynthesis mechanisms of cyanobacteria – one of the most ancient organism groups. As research continues for the photosynthesis hack that MIT developed recently, there other pieces of the photosynthesis puzzle that can provide valuable lessons for us.

According to Science Daily there are two avenues of development in process. One is working on genetically engineering real plants and cyanobacteria in order to produce the elements we want – not just oxygen released by photosynthesis, but other fuels such as hydrogen, alcohols, and hydrocarbons. The other direction of research is in line with the MIT discovery, which is mimicking photosynthetic processes in human-made products.

Researchers agree that these two parallels are necessary in the road to renewable energy resources – but we are on our way to a greater understanding of not just how it all works, but how we can emulate the mechanics in our lives.