Solar Fuels Laboratory
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ProfileProf. Joanna Kargul The sun powers almost all life on earth via the fundamental process of photosynthesis. The natural photosystems (photosystems I and II) are capable of capturing light and converting solar energy into chemical bonds within reduced carbon compounds. These are large macromolecular membrane protein complexes that together form biological nanoscale solar energy converters operating at an internal quantum efficiency close to unity. Solar energy conversion is one of the few renewable ways to produce clean energy to meet the increasing demands of modern civilization. In the era of global climate change, there is a strong need to understand photosynthetic processes and their regulatory basis, particularly in relation to solar fuel production in extreme environments. Our research focuses on three main long-term objectives:
As members of major European collaborative initiatives, e.g. the EuroSolarFuels, PolTur/GraphESol, Horizon Europe CL5/SUNGATE and Solar-driven chemistry SUNCOCAT consortia, we work on optimizing the construction and performance of biophotoelectrodes, which can be built into the heterojunction tandem devices to achieve efficient solar-to-fuel conversion. Methods used in the Kargul lab include an array of chromatographic approaches (AEC, HIC, IMAC, SEC), biochemical techniques (SDS-PAGE, BN-PAGE, Western blotting, sucrose gradient fractionation etc.), molecular biology methods (RT-PCR, DNA cloning), spectroscopic methods (fluorescence and absorption spectroscopy), photoelectrochemistry methods (CV, EIS, photochronoamperometry), organic synthesis and bioinformatics. We also have close collaboration with top national and international experts in materials science, photovoltaics, AFM photophysics, and computational chemistry to characterize and optimize the electron and energy transfer processes within the constructed biomolecular artificial leaf devices. Current international collaborations:
Current national collaborations:
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LeaderHead of Solar Fuels Laboratory at the Centre of New Technologies of the University of Warsaw. She obtained a PhD in Biological sciences in 1999 from the University of Warwick, UK. Postdoctoral research conducted in the group of James Barber at Imperial College London, UK led to several discoveries of novel molecular mechanisms of photosynthetic adaptation to changing environment (e.g. dissecting the molecular components of state transitions) and refining the crystallographic structure of the PSII oxygen evolving complex. Habilitation in 2009 from the University of Warsaw (UW). Since 2011 Associate Professor having established an independent research group at the UW. In 2011 Prof. Kargul established a node for solar fuels research in Poland and has led several projects on application of robust natural light-harvesting molecular nanomachines for construction of biohybrid solar cells and solar-to-fuel devices. She has extensive experience and success in leading several national and international initiatives (e.g. Founding Partner of ESF EuroSolarFuels and H2020 SUNRISE consortia; Member of Scientific Executive Board of SUNERGY large-scale R&I initiative) as well coordinator/work package leader of EU projects (e.g. consortia POLTUR/GraphESol, Solar-driven chemistry/SUNCOCAT and Horizon Europe CL5/SUNGATE) which have all been focused on natural and semi-artificial solar energy conversion systems. She serves as the International Ambassador of the British Biochemical Society and has served on several editorial and strategic executive boards, e.g. as member of the Scientific Advisory Board of European Society for Photobiology, Scientific Advisory Board of the European Materials Research Society, Senior Editor of the International Journal of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, member of the Grants Committee of the Biochemical Society (UK), expert of the NAWA programme of the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education, expert in NZ1 Panel of the National Science Centre, member of the Advisory Board of the European Green Deal, member of KIS4 Workgroup of Poland’s Ministry of Economic Development and Technology to name a few. Prof. Kargul’s highly interdisciplinary research spans structural biology, biochemistry, and plant physiology with electrochemistry, biophysics and material science. In her current research she focuses on structural and mechanistic aspects of the function and adaptation of the natural photosynthetic apparatus in extremophilic biophotocatalysts. She and her group apply this fundamental knowledge for the rational construction of biomolecular solar-to-fuel devices for optimised solar conversion by smart interfacing the photoenzymes, CO2-reducing enzymes and molecular catalysts with various nanostructured electrode materials. |
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Selected projects
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Selected publications
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ContactProf. Joanna Kargul |
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Mediahttps://sunergy-initiative.eu/project/interview-with-joanna-kargul Atomic-scale imaging reveals how biomolecules harvest light on graphene First Meeting of SUNRISE Stakeholders during EU Sustainable Energy Week SUNRISE Poland Stakeholder Workshop SUNRISE won the Horizon 2020 Grant Solar Fuels Lab at the DOKO2017 event (Ochota Campus Open Day). Polish scientists work on the construction of the biohybrid devices. This new technology will allow to Artificial leaf: photosynthesis improved by technology. Full article here. Scientists from the University of Warsaw make artificial leaf devices. They work using solar energy What is artificial photosynthesis? – Prof. Joanna Kargul explains in this short clip. Solar compounds form artificial leaves: companies and scientists mobilise to improve photosynthesis. Full article here. Molecular mechanisms of photosynthesis in extreme environmental conditions Interview with Professor Joanna Kargul (Polish only) https://nauka.tvp.pl/56125767/polska-technologia-wspomaga-sztuczna-fotosynteze |
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Educational game |