alt Hacker NewsOnce you realize how much more efficient solar panels are (compared to plants) at capturing energy from the sun, the next logical question is: could it make sense to synthesize food with the help of electricity from solar power?
There is a company called Solar Foods which is exploring exactly that: they use solar power to produce hydrogen, feed that hydrogen and CO2 to Xanthobacter bacteria, and harvest the produced protein.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S016777992...
Replies
Corn cyborgs, the future
AIUI plants are actually only responsive to a few wavelengths of light for most of their growth. I've wondered, if solar panels can collect energy over a broader spectrum, if it could actually be more efficient to drive LEDs tuned to just what plants need, driven by broad spectrum solar power. In this way you could, theoretically, power a 3d growing operation based solely on the solar panels on the roof.
sounds delicious
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Efficiency is a funny thing to argue here; Plants do a lot more than just produce food for humans. Also, I'll wager that whatever "produced protein" is manufactured will be only edible/palatable with other additives and processes.
It would be cool if we spent more time understanding our soils and all of the things living in them more instead of finding ways to require more artificial energy to sustain our civilization.