Question

How is light energy converted into chemical energy during photosynthesis?

Answer 1

Hint: Photosynthesis is a chemical process used by green plants and few other organisms to convert light energy into chemical energy. The sugar produced by this process is converted into ATP.

Complete answer:
Photosynthesis is the phenomenon of conversion of light energy to chemical energy. The chemical energy is stored in the form of sugars in the organisms. Sunlight functions as the main source of light energy, while carbon dioxide and water are the main reactants. Photosynthesis cannot occur in the dark. The carbon dioxide is taken or absorbed by the stomata present in the chloroplast. Water is absorbed by the roots from the soil and transported to the leaves by the vascular tissues.

In the presence of sunlight or light energy, carbon dioxide and water react with each other to form sugar molecules- glucose. The water molecules are split into hydrogen and oxygen molecules. The hydrogen molecules react with carbon dioxide and reduce them. Photosynthesis is a redox mechanism where carbon dioxide is reduced to form glucose, and water molecules are oxidized to form oxygen molecules. The molecular oxygen formed is released as a byproduct.

Photosynthesis utilizes solar energy and releases chemical energy in the form of sugars. The glucose molecule is further converted into ATP by the process of respiration.
The process of photosynthesis occurs in the double membranous structure of leaves- the chloroplast that is present inside the mesophyll cells of the leaves, in the eukaryotes. In prokaryotes, it occurs in the folding of the plasma membrane.

Note: Photosynthesis is not a reversible reaction as the formation of glucose is a chemical change, which cannot be reversed. Therefore, the light energy can be converted into chemical energy but the opposite cannot occur.