Most of us are familiar with the process of photosynthesis in plants, wherein energy from sunlight is used to build plant material, particularly a sugar called sucrose.
Scientists, however, recently discovered a process that can be considered as "reverse photosynthesis," where sunlight is used not to build but break down plant material to produce chemical and energy.
In their study published in the "Nature Communications" journal, researchers from the University of Copenhagen in Denmark detailed their newly discovered natural process, which starts by collecting sunlight using chlorophyll, the same molecule used in photosynthesis responsible for the green colour of plants.
The energy of sunlight is then combined with a particular kind of enzyme to be able to breakdown plant biomass. This process yields chemicals and biofuels which typically take a long time to produce.
University of Copenhagen Professor Claus Felby, who led this groundbreaking research, explained that their findings have great potential to revolutionise industrial production, without having to harm the environment by burning of fossil fuels.
"It has always been right beneath our noses, and yet no one has ever taken note: Photosynthesis by way of the sun doesn't just allow things to grow, the same principles can be applied to break plant matter down, allowing the release of chemical substances. In other words, direct sunlight drives chemical processes. The immense energy in solar light can be used so that processes can take place without additional energy inputs," Felby said in an article on EurekAlert.
"This is a game changer, one that could transform the industrial production of fuels and chemicals, thus serving to reduce pollution significantly," he added.
David Cannella, a fellow researcher and discoverer, explained that the faster breakdown of biomass by the use of sunlight can pave the way to faster and more energy efficient production of products such as plastics.
"The discovery means that by using the Sun, we can produce biofuels and biochemicals for things like plastics—faster, at lower temperatures and with enhanced energy-efficiency. Some of the reactions, which currently take 24 hours, can be achieved in just 10 minutes by using the Sun," Cannella also told EurekAlert.
