Efforts to find cleaner ways of producing energy have resulted in many new and innovative technologies. Among these technologies are devices that operate using artificial photosynthesis, a chemical process similar to the process used by plants to store energy from sunlight.

More information about artificial photosynthesis can be found here.

One such device is the "artificial leaf", pioneered by Dr. Daniel G. Nocera and his research team and being further developed by Sun Dynamix, a company co-founded by Dr. Nocera. The "leaf", a silicon wafer coated with chemical catalysts, can break down water into hydrogen and oxygen when exposed to sunlight. The hydrogen generated by the "leaf" can then be used to produce electricity in fuel cells.

More information about the "artificial leaf" can be found here and here.

Patent documentation can give us more insights into inventions made by Dr. Daniel G. Nocera, patent applications filed by Sun Dynamix, and inventions in related fields of technology.

A sample search in PATENTSCOPE for patent documents naming Daniel G. Nocera as an inventor can be accessed here. The search is designed to retrieve patent documents that contain the name of the inventor in the order "first name-middle name/initial-last name" or "last name-first name-middle name/initial" and uses wildcard operators to include both the middle initial "g" and the full middle name "george".

A sample search in PATENTSCOPE for patent documents filed by Sun Dynamix can be accessed here.

A sample search in PATENTSCOPE for patent documents filed in fields of technology related to the "artificial leaf" can be accessed here. The search uses the following International Patent Classification (IPC) symbols:

• C25B 1/04: Electrolytic production of inorganic compounds or non-metals of hydrogen or oxygen by electrolysis of water
• C25B 11/04: Electrodes; Manufacture thereof not otherwise provided for characterised by the material
• H01M 4/86: Inert electrodes with catalytic activity, e.g. for fuel cells
• H01M 4/90: Inert electrodes with catalytic activity, e.g. for fuel cells - Selection of catalytic material

The classifications symbols were derived from the international patent application WO/2009/154753, retrieved using the inventor search above.

Do you know of any other cool technologies that you’d like to share with the eTISC community, in particular from inventors in your country?