Minimum energy losses showing the percentage remaining and percentage losses from an original 100% calculated for stage of photosynthetic energy transduction from sunlight incident on a leaf to plant biomass

Range Figure - link %
Organism Plants
Reference Zhu XG, Long SP, Ort DR. Improving photosynthetic efficiency for greater yield. Annu Rev Plant Biol. 2010 61 :235-61. doi: 10.1146/annurev-arplant-042809-112206. p.240 figure 2PubMed ID20192734
Primary Source Zhu XG, de Sturler E, Long SP. 2007. Optimizing the distribution of resources between enzymes of carbon metabolism can dramatically increase photosynthetic rate: a numerical simulation using an evolutionary algorithm. Plant Physiol. 145: 513–26PubMed ID17720759
Comments "Both C3 and C4 (NADP–malic enzyme type) photosynthesis are presented. Calculations assume a leaf temperature of 30°C and an atmospheric [CO2] of 387 ppm. The theoretical maximal photosynthetic energy conversion efficiency (ec) is 4.6% for C3 and 6% for C4 plants. These values are for total full-spectrum solar radiation. If the analysis is limited to photosynthetically active radiation (400–700 nm), then these values become 9.4% for C3 and 12.3% for C4. This analysis is redrawn, with modifications explained in the text, from (primary source)." See note beneath table
Entered by Uri M
ID 109830