BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//Talks.cam//talks.cam.ac.uk//
X-WR-CALNAME:Talks.cam
BEGIN:VEVENT
SUMMARY:Bio-Photovoltaic (BPV) devices: wiring photosynthetic material - P
 aolo Bombelli
DTSTART:20091204T130000Z
DTEND:20091204T133000Z
UID:TALK20710@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:15560
DESCRIPTION:The Sun\, in the form of solar energy\, is the ultimate source
  of energy for all life on Earth and harnessing this energy is one of the 
 great scientific and technological challenges. Traditional fossil fuels ar
 e considered to be the main contributor to the greenhouse effect\; they ar
 e subject to a large political risk and destined to unavoidable depletion.
  Conversely\, solar energy is virtually carbon-free\, extremely abundant a
 nd available worldwide. Nature has clearly demonstrated that it is possibl
 e to harness solar energy through the process of photosynthesis. It is est
 imated that the Earth's photosynthetic organisms convert over 10 times mor
 e energy per year than current human energy consumption\, albeit with a lo
 w energy conversion efficiency (average ca. 0.25%). A number or synthetic 
 techniques have also been developed to try and emulate the photosynthetic 
 process\; the most successful of these is the traditional solar cells base
 d on the photovoltaic effect. Unlike photosynthetic organisms they are abl
 e to convert energy with a high efficiency (ca. 10%). However\, the techno
 logy is based on the use of expensive\, high purity semi-conductor materia
 ls. The talk will describe the development of a method for harnessing sola
 r energy which combines the synthetic and biological techniques targeting 
 low manufacturing costs\, high energy conversion efficiency and virtually 
 carbon-free emission. The talk will include: " BPV\, general introduction 
 " Historical background " Our devices " Proposed future work 
LOCATION:Department of Plant Sciences\, Large Lecture Theatre
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR