Maxwell's demon creates a concentration gradient

Recent work from the Nitschke group, published in Nature Chemistry, has reported a functional example of Maxwell's demon. In this system, the directional transport of o-fluoroazobenzene between the arms of a U-tube is driven by the demon upon light irradiation. The resultant concentration gradient is further harnessed to drive the transport of naphthalene in the opposite direction. It is anticipated that such light-driven selective pumping of a chemical species across a membrane may prove useful for chemical separations, potentially providing a solution to one of the key challenges in the decarbonisation of the world economy.

This work was also recently highlighted by New Scientist and the full article can be accessed via the following link: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2435994-chemists-invoke-bizarre-maxwells-demon-on-the-largest-scale-yet/