A newly discovered form of chlorophyll could be the secret to producing cheaper biofuel.
Scientists at the University of Sydney have stumbled upon a new type of chlorophyll-the substance plants use to harness solar energy-which is capable of using lower light energy than any other known form of the protein.
Its the first time in over 60 years a new form has been found, and rather ingloriously the new form now called chlorophyll f was discovered entirely by accident.
Scientists stumbled upon the f strain of the organism in stromatolites (rock-like structures built by photosynthetic bacteria, called cyanobacteria) found Western Australia’s Shark Bay.
Chlorophyll is the essential molecule in oxygenic photosynthesis – the process that enables plants, algae and some bacteria to convert carbon dioxide into sugar and oxygen by using free energy from sunlight. Until recently, oxygenic photosynthesis was thought only to occur in light that is visible to human eyes, between 400nm to 710nm, as chlorophyll was strictly limited to absorbing light in this range.
Now the rules of photosynthesis are rewritten, with the discovery of a fifth type of chlorophyll that can absorb light of even lower photon energy – 720nm – making it the most red-shifted chlorophyll to date.
Because the new strain is able to use light which other forms cannot utilise, it is hoped that someday the molecule could help develop new types of algae which can harness a larger part of the light spectrum to mass produce biofuel and make it more cost-efficient compared to fossil fuels.
The new f variant allows organisms with limited access to light (such as within cave structures) still use photosynthesis to provide energy for its survival.
The historic study into the new chlorophyll is published online in Science journal and details the findings of an interdisciplinary scientists headed by lead author Dr Min Chen from the University of Sydney
"Discovering this new chlorophyll has completely overturned the traditional notion that photosynthesis needs high energy light," Dr Chen said.
"Chlorophyll f, and its ability to absorb infrared light, can have numerous applications to industries like plant biotechnology and bioenergy,” she added.
