Artificial Photosynthesis Market Trends

Growth Drivers

• Rising Demand for Environmentally Friendly Fuel– Owing to their finite, depleting supply and negative effects on the environment, fossil fuels continue to be unsustainable as an energy source. As a result, the need for sustainable and eco-friendly alternative energy sources has increased. Artificial photosynthesis may be used to create fuels made of hydrocarbons, which can replace fossil fuels in a useful way. In 2019, more than 10% of global primary energy was produced from renewable technologies.

• Increasing Usage of Green Hydrogen– Owing to the rising carbon emissions, particularly from the industrial and transportation sectors, green hydrogen is becoming quite popular. Further, it is anticipated that increased use of green hydrogen would increase demand for artificial photosynthesis. As per estimates, in 2021, the world's demand for hydrogen increased by more than 2%, mostly as a result of increased activity in the chemical and refining industries.

• Rising Spending Power of Consumers – Growing consumer purchasing power brought on by increased per capita income is driving up demand for crops. Further, artificial photosynthesis techniques might be used to grow crops. For instance, scientists have created an artificial photosynthesis technique that allows plants to grow in the dark. According to data, as of January 2022, consumer expenditure in India was more than 20 trillion rupees.

• Growing Acceptance of Green Technology and Sustainable Development – On the account of surging environmental awareness among people, the adoption of green technology is growing. Further, artificial photosynthesis is the perfect energy source since it can provide a clean fuel without producing any negative byproducts, such as greenhouse gases. In 2020, more than 50% of individuals worldwide had access to clean cooking fuels and technology.

Challenges

• Extremely high capital expenditure- The goal of artificial photosynthesis is to duplicate the processes of natural photosynthesis to convert solar energy into chemical fuels, sometimes known as solar fuels. It is a challenging but valuable endeavor to mimic nature since it may lead to discoveries that are worth hundreds of billions of dollars. The potential of artificial photosynthesis is frequently criticized for a variety of reasons, including a lack of technological competence, a lack of energy storage methods, as well as its high cost and poor efficiency.

• Need for catalyst optimization and photoanode material stability

• Lack of stability in materials used for artificial photosynthesis