CONTENTS 



Page 



Preface v 



Contents ix 



INTRODUCTION 



Chap. 1. Photosynthesis and Its Role in Nature 1 



A. Organic Matter and Life Energy 1 



B. The Total Yield of Photosynthesis on Earth 5 



Bibhography 11 



Chap. 2. The Discovery of Photosynthesis 12 



1. Precursor: Stephen Hales 12 



2. The Background: The Birth of Pneumochemistry 12 



3. The Purification of Air by Plants: Priestley 13 



4. The Importance of Sunhght: Ingen-Housz 17 



5. The Part of Carbon Dioxide: Senebier 19 



6. The Assimilation of Carbon 22 



7. The Participation of Water: de Saussure 23 



8. The Conversion of Light Energy: Robert Mayer 24 



Bibhography 27 



PART ONE— THE CHEMISTRY OF PHOTOSYNTHESIS 

 AND RELATED PROCESSES 



Chap. 3. The Over-All Reaction and the Products of Photosynthesis 31 



A. The Quantitative Balance of Photosynthesis 31 



1. The Photosynthetic Quotient 31 



2. The Yield of Organic Matter 35 



B. The Products of Photosynthesis 38 



1. The Carbohydrates 38 



2. The Photosynthetic Formation of Oils and Proteins 43 



3. The First Products of Photosynthesis and Their Transforma- 

 tions 44 



C. The Energy of Photosynthesis 47 



D. Photosynthesis as a Sensitized Oxidation-Reduction 51 



Bibliography 56 



Chap. 4. Photosynthesis and Related Processes Outside the Living Cell 61 



A. Photosynthesis by Dried Leaves, Isolated Chloroplasts and Chloro- 

 phyll Preparations 61 



1. Leaf Powders and Isolated Chloroplasts 61 



2. .Experiments with Chlorophyll Preparations 67 



B. The Photochemical Oxidation of Water 69 



1 . Decomposition of Water in Ultraviolet Light 71 



2. Mercury-Sensitized Decomposition of Water 71 



