Tokyo, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- A Japanese scientific research team recently reported in the British journal Chemical Science that they have developed a new sugar production technology that uses metal oxygenates as catalysts and carbon dioxide as raw materials, which can produce unnatural sugars at at least hundreds of times the rate of photosynthesis.
Japan's National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) recently issued a press release saying that in the field of agriculture, natural sugars such as glucose and fructose can be produced through plant photosynthesis, which are basic energy substances for most living organisms, including humans. However, the need for large amounts of water, nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus, as well as large amounts of land, is increasing due to factors such as increased demand for food, and concerns about the sustainability of sugar supply are increasing.
The research institute, a team from Osaka University and Toyota Research Institute in Japan have found that metal oxygenates such as sodium tungstate can catalyze the formation of unnatural sugars from raw materials such as carbon dioxide under certain conditions. Sugar is produced at least hundreds of times faster with the new technology than photosynthesis. The research team confirmed that the sugar produced by the technology can be consumed by microorganisms, suggesting that this sugar can be used as a raw material for bioproduction.
According to the researchers, the results are expected to promote the development of sugar-based biofuels, food production and other fields, and may even create new bioindustries.