| Professor David Officer Professor David Officer |
UOW researcher an invited speaker at Royal Society meeting in London
1 Aug 2007 | Bernie Goldie
UOW solar energy expert, Professor David Officer, was one of the invited speakers at the recent Solar Energy and Artificial Photosynthesis meeting conducted by the Royal Society of London.
The 14th International Congress on Photosynthesis attracted about 250 attendees to the London meeting.
Professor Officer, from the ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science, presented a talk on “Artificial Photosynthesis: Designing New Materials for Light Harvesting”.
He said the potential for the efficient and sustainable use of solar energy using renewable materials was beautifully illustrated on a daily basis by photosynthesis, the harvesting of light by chlorophyll and the use of the resulting captured energy to split water or convert carbon dioxide into a chemical feedstock.
Professor Officer told the meeting that while the emulation of photosynthesis itself remains one of the great scientific challenges of the 21st century, the light harvesting component is effectively imitated by photo electrochemical solar cells in which solar energy is captured by light harvesting dyes absorbed on nanocrystalline films of a semiconductor such as titanium dioxide.
The meeting brought together scientists conducting research into natural photosynthesis and on photochemical, photo electrochemical and photovoltaic systems in order to provide a forum for the exchange of ideas and concepts to advance technologies for solar energy conversion.
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