The Solar Chemicals Network

大自然已经进化出一系列机器和机制，以可持续的方式从最丰富的能源资源-太阳能中的水，二氧化碳和氮气中产生化学品。相比之下，工业化社会依赖于能源密集型过程中从化石资源中提取的化学品。对甲醇、氨和聚合物前体等关键化学品的需求正在迅速增长，这是由于农业、制造业和消费品的需求增加。因此，迫切需要找到可持续的方法来产生我们在现代生活中所依赖的化学物质。实现这些转变的人工或半人工光驱动材料的科学进展正在进行中。但成功将需要来自广泛领域的投入，包括化学、生物学、化学工程和物理学。该网络计划将主要研究人员聚集在一起，建立一个多元化的社区，为太阳能化学品行业提供基础科学和技术。我们将支持社区，并通过一系列活动和旅行赠款促进其产生新颖的活动。我们还将通过与英国和国际合作伙伴共同创建的一系列政策和外联文件和活动，努力提高公众和政策制定者对可持续化学品和燃料生产这一潜在变革方法的认识。

Nature has evolved an array of machineries and mechanisms for sustainably generating chemicals in a versatile manner from water, carbon dioxide and nitrogen from the most abundant energy resource available - solar. In contrast industrialised society relies on chemicals that are derived from fossil resources in energy intensive processes. The demand for key chemicals such as methanol, ammonia and polymer precursors is growing rapidly, driven by increased needs for use in agriculture, manufacturing and consumer products. It follows that there is an urgent need to find sustainable ways to generate the chemicals which we rely on in modern life. Scientific progress towards artificial, or semi-artificial light-driven materials that achieve these transformations is underway. But success will require input from a wide range of fields including chemistry, biology, chemical engineering and physics. This network proposes to bring together the key researchers to build a diverse community that can deliver the underpinning science and technology for a solar chemicals industry. We will support the community and faccilitate it to generate novel activities that advance the field through a series of events and travel grants. We will also work to raise awareness of this potentially transformative approach to sustainable chemicals and fuels production with the public and policy makers through a range of policy and outreach doccuments and events co-created with UK and international partners.