Step Aside Trees, We Have A New Leaf
A graduate from the Royal College of Art has claimed to have developed a silk leaf that could create oxygen for space travel and make the air better here on Earth. Julian Melchiorri, along with the silk lab from Tufts University, is responsible for this new idea.
The leaf is created from a mix of protein extracted from silk and chloroplasts and when exposed to light and water, the leaf supposedly acts just like our friends already on the trees and produces oxygen. Currently, NASA is researching ways to produce oxygen for long-distance space travel and Melchiorri is hoping that this could help.
Small flaw in the design though--Plants perform this activity as a source of food and there isn’t an explanation as to what happens to the carbon and hydrogen once it's created. This situation raises a few questions for us and scientists. Great idea, either way!
Source: www.iflscience.com
Sarah D. I Designer I The DesignBloc
