CO₂toSugar, Sustainable Technology Breakthrough

Supporting Food Security, Industrial Innovation, and Global Carbon Neutrality
支持粮食安全、推动工业创新、助力全球碳中和

Introduction
During the crucial period when the world is actively addressing climate change and striving to explore solutions for the sustainable use of resources, a Chinese research team has achieved a major breakthrough with far-reaching implications in the field of carbon dioxide conversion and utilization — successfully converting carbon dioxide into sugars. This groundbreaking achievement opens up a new and highly promising path for resolving the dual global predicament of environmental and resource challenges.
引言
当前，全球正积极应对气候变化，并努力探索资源可持续利用的解决方案，在此关键时期，中国的研究团队在二氧化碳转化与利用领域取得了一项具有深远意义的重大突破——成功将二氧化碳转化为糖类。这一开创性成果为解决全球环境与资源双重困境开辟了一条全新且极具前景的道路。

Behind the Breakthrough: The Innovative Journey of the Research Team
The research teams from the Tianjin Institute of Industrial Biotechnology and the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, both under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, have achieved this remarkable feat. They delved into enzyme-catalyzed reactions for artificial sugar synthesis, and innovatively designed and built a non-natural conversion pathway combining chemistry and enzymes. With the synergy of chemical catalysts and enzyme catalysts, they efficiently and accurately obtained four types of hexoses—glucose, psicose, tagatose, and mannose—in only about 17 hours. This achievement is like an exquisite “molecular transformation,” which has completely revolutionized the traditional way of obtaining sugar.
突破背后：研究团队的创新历程
中国科学院下属的天津工业生物技术研究所与大连化学物理研究所的研究团队共同实现了这一非凡成就。他们深入研究酶催化反应以用于人工合成糖类，并创新性地设计构建出一条化学与酶学相结合的非天然转化路径。借助化学催化剂与酶催化剂的协同作用，团队仅用约 17 小时，就高效且精准地获得了葡萄糖、阿洛酮糖、塔格糖和甘露糖四种六碳糖。这一成果宛如一场精妙的 “分子变身”，彻底颠覆了传统的糖类获取方式。

Technical Advantages: Innovations Surpassing Nature and Tradition

• High-Efficiency Carbon Conversion Rate

The carbon conversion rate of this technology far exceeds that of traditional plant photosynthesis, and also outperforms existing chemical sugar production methods as well as electrochemistry-biology coupled artificial sugar synthesis approaches. It represents the highest level of carbon conversion efficiency in current artificial sugar synthesis routes. This means that with the consumption of the same amount of carbon dioxide, more sugar can be produced, greatly improving the efficiency of resource utilization.

• Remarkable Synthesis Speed

In the past, sugar extraction relied on planting crops such as sugarcane, which had an extremely long growth cycle, often requiring a “year” as the unit to wait for harvest. However, this technology developed by Chinese scientists has achieved a revolutionary leap in sugar production time from “years” to “hours”. The sugar synthesis efficiency reaches as high as 0.67 grams per liter per hour, which is more than 10 times higher than the known results, taking the lead in the field of artificial sugar synthesis at home and abroad.

• Precise Synthesis Control

The research team has successfully achieved precise control over artificial sugar synthesis. By subtly adjusting the catalytic effects of different enzymes, theoretically, almost any type of sugar can be synthesized. This greatly expands the variety and application scope of sugars, breaking the limitations of natural synthesis and traditional technologies in terms of sugar molecular structure.
技术优势：超越自然与传统的创新

• 高效碳转化率：

该技术的碳转化率远超传统植物光合作用，同时也优于现有的化学制糖方法及电化学-生物耦合人工制糖途径，代表了当前人工制糖路线中碳转化效率的最高水平。这意味着消耗等量二氧化碳的情况下，可产出更多糖类，大幅提升了资源利用效率。

• 卓越合成速度：

过去，糖分提取依赖甘蔗等农作物种植，其生长周期极长，往往需以“年”为单位等待收获。而中国科学家研发的这项技术，实现了制糖时间从“年”到“小时”的革命性跨越。糖类合成效率高达每升每小时0.67克，较已知成果提升10倍以上，在国内外人工制糖领域处于领先地位。

• 精准合成调控：

研究团队成功实现了对人工制糖过程的精准调控。通过巧妙调节不同酶的催化作用，理论上几乎可合成任意种类的糖类。这一突破大幅拓展了糖类的种类与应用范围，打破了自然合成及传统技术在糖类分子结构上的局限。

Supporting the China & EU Decarbonizations Strategies and Synergy
As a typical “carbon-negative technology”, the achievement of sugar production from carbon dioxide provides an innovative solution for China and the European Union (EU) to achieve their carbon neutrality goals.
The core of China’s “Dual Carbon Goal” and EU’s “Green Deal” lies in building a dual-driver low-carbon system of “emission reduction + carbon sequestration”.
This technology can directionally convert carbon dioxide from industrial emissions and the atmosphere, transforming “greenhouse gases” into high-value-added sugar resources. It not only reduces the total carbon emissions but also lessens reliance on land and water resources required for traditional agricultural sugar production. Highly aligned with the strategic directions of “circular economy” and “green low-carbon development”, it opens up a new path for the low-carbon transformation of industrial parks and the food processing industry.
The carbon dioxide-to-sugar technology offers an option with both environmental and economic value: on one hand, it helps industrial enterprises (such as those in the food and pharmaceutical industries) reduce their carbon footprints; on the other hand, its green synthesis model of “chemical-enzyme coupling” is highly consistent also with the EU’s advocated concept of a “zero-waste society”.
The birth of this technology has built a new bridge for cooperation between China and the EU in the field of carbon neutrality. The two sides can carry out collaboration in areas such as “formulation of carbon dioxide conversion technology standards“, “joint R&D of enzyme catalysts“, and “pilot projects for industrial application“, joining hands to promote the large-scale application of global carbon-negative technologies.

• Safeguarding Food Security

The traditional “carbon dioxide biomass resource sugar” processing model is limited by the energy conversion efficiency of plant photosynthesis and is highly vulnerable to factors such as natural disasters and plant diseases and pests, resulting in significant hidden risks in raw material supply. However, the emergence of efficient and precise artificial sugar production technology can reduce excessive reliance on agricultural production, mitigate the impact of uncertain factors on sugar supply, and add a solid guarantee to national food security. In the long run, it will help better meet the huge demand for sugar domestically and even globally, and stabilize the food supply chain.

• Promoting Industrial Innovation

Food Industry: It can serve as a high-quality raw material, providing the food industry with healthier and more diverse sugar options. This meets consumers’ increasingly diversified taste and nutritional needs, and helps develop more innovative food products. For example, using synthesized rare or functional sugars can produce foods with special health-care functions to meet the health needs of specific groups.
Pharmaceutical Field: It opens up a new source of sugar raw materials for pharmaceutical R&D and production. New sugar raw materials may have unique chemical structures and biological activities, which are conducive to the development of new drugs with more significant curative effects and fewer side effects, promoting the innovative development of the pharmaceutical industry and improving human health.
Industrial Manufacturing: It reduces the reliance of industrial production on traditional sugar raw materials, lowers the demand for land, water resources, etc., and effectively eases the tension of resources.

• Future Outlook: Continuous Exploration and Broad Prospects

The breakthrough made by Chinese scientists in the field of carbon dioxide-to-sugar is only the starting point for the future. On one hand, they plan to expand the “chemical-enzyme coupling” synthesis system and attempt to synthesize more sugar molecules that are rare or even undiscovered in nature, such as sugar alcohols, further enriching the types and functions of sugars. On the other hand, with the continuous maturity and improvement of the technology, it is expected to achieve in-depth integration with advanced technologies in other cutting-edge fields, such as artificial intelligence and nanotechnology, providing innovative solutions to address more global issues.
 助力中国欧盟脱碳战略与协同发展
二氧化碳制糖成果作为典型的“负碳技术”，为中国与欧盟（EU）实现碳中和目标提供了创新性解决方案。
中国“双碳目标”与欧盟“绿色新政”（Green Deal）的核心，在于构建“减排+固碳”双轮驱动的低碳体系。该技术可对工业排放及大气中的二氧化碳进行定向转化，将“温室气体”转变为高附加值糖类资源。这不仅能减少碳总排放量，还可降低传统农业制糖对土地与水资源的依赖，高度契合“循环经济”与“绿色低碳发展”的战略方向，为工业园区及食品加工业的低碳转型开辟了新路径。
二氧化碳制糖技术提供了一种兼具环境与经济价值的选择：一方面，它助力工业企业（如食品、制药企业）减少碳足迹；另一方面，其“化学-酶耦合”的绿色合成模式，也与欧盟倡导的“零废弃社会”理念高度一致。
该技术的诞生，为中欧在碳中和领域的合作搭建了新桥梁。双方可在“二氧化碳转化技术标准制定”“酶催化剂联合研发”“工业应用试点项目”等领域开展协作，携手推动全球负碳技术的规模化应用。

• 保障粮食安全

传统“二氧化碳-生物质资源-糖类”加工模式受限于植物光合作用的能量转化效率，且易受自然灾害、病虫害等因素影响，导致原料供应存在较大隐患。而高效精准的人工制糖技术的出现，可降低对农业生产的过度依赖，减轻不确定因素对食糖供应的冲击，为国家粮食安全增添坚实保障。从长远来看，这将有助于更好地满足国内乃至全球对糖类的巨大需求，稳定食品供应链。

• 推动产业创新

食品工业：该技术产出的糖类可作为优质原料，为食品工业提供更健康、更多元的糖类选择。这既能满足消费者日益多样化的口味与营养需求，也有助于开发更多创新食品。例如，利用合成的稀有糖类或功能性糖类，可生产具备特殊保健功能的食品，满足特定人群的健康需求。
制药领域：为医药研发与生产开辟了糖类原料新来源。新型糖类原料可能具备独特的化学结构与生物活性，有利于研发疗效更显著、副作用更少的新药，推动制药产业创新发展，改善人类健康水平。
工业制造：降低工业生产对传统糖类原料的依赖，减少对土地、水资源等的需求，有效缓解资源紧张局面。

• 未来展望：持续探索，前景广阔

中国科学家在二氧化碳制糖领域取得的突破，仅是未来探索的起点。一方面，研究团队计划拓展“化学-酶耦合”合成体系，尝试合成更多自然界中稀有甚至尚未发现的糖类分子（如糖醇类），进一步丰富糖类的种类与功能。另一方面，随着该技术的不断成熟与完善，有望与人工智能、纳米技术等其他前沿领域的先进技术实现深度融合，为解决更多全球性问题提供创新性方案。

Food safety concerns about CO₂-to-sugar technology
At this stage, the research is still in its early laboratory phase. The sugars produced — glucose, psicose, tagatose, and mannose — are not artificial molecules invented from scratch, but natural sugars that already exist in foods. From a chemical standpoint, they are indistinguishable from the same sugars produced by plants.

However, some food safety concerns could arise about:

• Purity of the final product: Laboratory or industrial-scale synthesis may leave residual catalysts, enzyme fragments, or by-products that must be removed to meet food-grade safety standards.
• Metabolic impacts: While glucose and mannose are well studied, rare sugars like psicose and tagatose have distinct metabolic pathways. They are generally considered safe and are even studied as low-calorie sugar substitutes, but large-scale human consumption would still require toxicological and nutritional assessments.
• Production scale-up risks: Industrial bioreactors might introduce contamination risks (microbial, chemical), so food safety certification systems (e.g., EFSA in the EU, NMPA in China, FDA in the U.S.) would need to assess and regulate production.

From a scientific standpoint, the existing evidence on rare sugars are:

• D-psicose (allulose): already approved in the U.S. and Japan as a food ingredient; EFSA has also issued opinions. It has low caloric value and may have health benefits, but excessive intake could cause mild gastrointestinal issues.
• Tagatose: already used in some foods, with GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe) status in the U.S. and EFSA approval in the EU. Safe within certain intake levels.
• Mannose: naturally present in some fruits and widely studied, though high doses can cause digestive issues.
• Glucose: universally safe and well known.

The scientific consensus so far suggests no fundamental toxicity risk if the sugars are chemically identical to natural ones. The main concern is regulatory: ensuring purity, controlling dosage, and verifying long-term health impacts when consumed at scale
二氧化碳制糖技术的食品安全关切
当前，该研究仍处于实验室早期阶段。其产出的糖类（葡萄糖、阿洛酮糖、塔格糖、甘露糖）并非全新发明的人工分子，而是食品中已存在的天然糖类。从化学角度而言，它们与植物产生的同类糖类完全一致。

然而，以下几方面可能引发食品安全关切：

• 最终产品纯度：实验室或工业规模合成过程中，可能残留催化剂、酶片段或副产物。这些物质必须彻底去除，才能满足食品级安全标准。
• 代谢影响：尽管葡萄糖和甘露糖的研究已较为充分，但阿洛酮糖、塔格糖等稀有糖类具有独特的代谢途径。这类糖类虽普遍被认为安全，甚至被研究用作低热量代糖，但大规模人体摄入仍需开展毒理学与营养学评估。
• 量产放大风险：工业生物反应器可能引入污染风险（微生物污染、化学污染），因此需要食品安全认证机构（如欧盟的欧洲食品安全局EFSA、中国的国家药品监督管理局NMPA、美国的食品药品监督管理局FDA）对生产过程进行评估与监管。

从科学角度来看，关于稀有糖类的现有证据如下：

• D-阿洛酮糖（D-psicose）：已在美国和日本获批作为食品原料，欧洲食品安全局（EFSA）也已发布相关意见。其热量值低，或具有健康益处，但过量摄入可能引发轻微胃肠道不适。
• 塔格糖（Tagatose）：已应用于部分食品，在美国获得“一般认为安全”（GRAS）认证，在欧盟也通过了EFSA的安全性审批，在特定摄入量范围内安全。
• 甘露糖（Mannose）：天然存在于部分水果中，相关研究广泛，不过高剂量摄入可能导致消化系统不适。
• 葡萄糖（Glucose）：安全性已得到普遍认可，且为人所熟知。

目前科学界的共识是：若这些糖类在化学结构上与天然糖类完全一致，则不存在根本性毒性风险。主要关切集中在监管层面，即确保产品纯度、控制食用剂量，并验证大规模长期摄入对健康的影响。

Conclusion
Chinese research teams have made a major breakthrough in CO₂-to-sugar technology. With high carbon conversion, fast synthesis and precise sugar control, this sustainable tech supports China’s “Dual Carbon Goal” and the EU’s “Green Deal”, facilitates their carbon neutrality cooperation (e.g., joint enzyme R&D, industrial pilots), safeguards food security, drives industrial innovation, and lays a foundation for large-scale carbon-negative solutions.
结论
中国研究团队在二氧化碳制糖技术领域取得重大突破。该可持续技术具备碳转化率高、合成速度快、糖类调控精准等优势，不仅为中国“双碳目标”与欧盟“绿色新政”（Green Deal）提供支撑，还能推动双方在碳中和领域的合作（如酶催化剂联合研发、工业应用试点等），同时保障粮食安全、驱动产业创新，并为大规模负碳解决方案的落地奠定基础。