Call for articles – From Photosynthesis to Industrial Applications

Climate change, energy use and food security are the main challenges that our society is facing nowadays. The impact of carbon dioxide on the Earth´s climate forces us to investigate possibilities for using sustainable energy resources. One potential approach to address this problem is to recycle carbon dioxide to fuel- or chemical production using photosynthesis. Photosynthetic organisms, ranging from microorganisms to trees, use solar energy to incorporate atmospheric CO₂ into organic molecules. Therefore, photosynthesis not only prevents climate change, the produced biomass also provides food and feed, and can also be used in technical processes to gain valuable products and biofuels. While the principle is compelling, the practical integration of this concept still provides significant scientific and economic challenges.

While higher plants have been cultivated for thousands of years, the biotechnological advantages of using algae and cyanobacteria have emerged recently. Given their high photosynthetic efficiency, rapid biomass growth, and ability to synthesize feedstock for food, feed, energy or high-value chemicals, microalgae are the most productive photosynthetic organisms on Earth. These organisms can be cultivated in a variety of environments, including saline or wastewater, or on unproductive drylands, without competing for valuable arable land or freshwater resources. However, despite the high potential of microalgae, scaling up algal farming to industrial levels faces significant scientific barriers, ranging from cultivation to downstream processes.

From the conference “From Photosynthesis to Industrial Applications” (merging two congresses dealing with important questions for a sustainable future: The Nordic Photosynthesis Congress (NPC) and the fifth Nordic Algae Symposia (NAS)), arose the idea of organizing a Special Issue on the topic. In this special issue, we welcome original research, comprehensive and minireviews, technical focus, short communications, and viewpoints highlighting the role of photosynthetic organisms and their biotechnological usage.

Deadline: end of January 2024
Good to know: no publication fee and free to view for two months (from Issue compilation)

Guest Editors