Solar-driven biological inorganic hybrid systems for the production of solar fuels and chemicals from carbon dioxide

The shortage of fossil fuels and extensive environmental pollution force the development of renewable energy. To address these problems, converting solar energy to valuable fuels and chemicals by photosynthesis is thought to be a promising and prospective approach. However, the low solar energy conversion efficiency of natural photosynthesis and the poor selectivity of current artificial photosynthesis technologies significantly limit the development of solar-to-chemicals conversion. Recently, solar-driven biological inorganic hybrid systems, which integrate biological catalysts with the inorganic light-harvesting components, are proposed to overcome the limitations of artificial and natural photosynthesis. This review presents recent progress and accomplishment of the hybrid systems for the production of organic fuels and chemicals from carbon dioxide. Firstly, we introduce the working principles of three typical hybrid systems, including photovoltaic-driven biological inorganic system, microbial photoelectrochemical system, and photosensitized biological inorganic system. Then, to deeply understand the interaction between microorganisms and inorganic materials, we discuss the charge transfer between microorganisms and inorganic materials. Moreover, to improve the interaction between microorganisms and inorganic materials, the surficial morphological and chemical modification of the inorganic materials are proposed to promote the adherence of microorganisms and the charge transfer between microorganisms and inorganic materials. Finally, we discuss the current challenges for the development of the hybrid systems.