Photolytic artificial lung

1. A method for delivering oxygen to blood comprising:

providing the blood into a photolytic cell;

converting water present in the blood into dissolved oxygen by a light-activated catalyst in said photolytic cell, wherein the dissolved oxygen is formed directly from water and bypasses the gaseous state;

binding said dissolved oxygen to an oxygen carrier in said blood; and

removing said blood out of said photolytic cell.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising removing carbon dioxide from said blood in said photolytic cell.

3. A method for delivering oxygen to a blood comprising:

providing the blood into a photolytic cell;

converting water present in the blood into dissolved oxygen by a light-activated catalyst in said photolytic cell, wherein the dissolved oxygen is formed directly from water and bypasses the gaseous state;

producing carbon dioxide from said blood in said photolytic cell;

removing said carbon dioxide from said blood;

binding said dissolved oxygen to said blood; and

removing said blood out of said photolytic cell.

4. A method for oxygenating blood from a patient comprising the steps of:

providing blood from a patient into a photolytic cell;

converting water present in the blood into dissolved oxygen in said photolytic cell by a series of photochemical reactions;

binding the dissolved oxygen to blood hemoglobin;

forming carbon dioxide in said photolytic cell;

removing carbon dioxide formed in said photolytic cell and blood; and

removing oxygenated blood out of said photolytic cell and returning the blood to the patient.

5. A method for producing oxygen and removing carbon dioxide from a patient's blood comprising the steps of:

providing deoxygenated blood received from a patient into a photolytic cell, wherein said photolytic cell contains a light activated catalyst having the ability of converting water to oxygen upon light activation;

providing light to said photolytic cell and activating said catalyst wherein water present in the blood is converted into dissolved oxygen and carbon dioxide is formed in said photolytic cell;

binding the dissolved oxygen to blood hemoglobin in said photolytic cell;

removing the carbon dioxide formed in said photolytic cell; and

removing the oxygenated blood out of said photolytic cell and returning the blood to the patient.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the oxygen carrier is hemoglobin.

7. A method for oxygenating blood from a patient comprising the steps of:

contacting blood from a patient with a photolytic cell;

converting water present in the blood into dissolved oxygen; and

binding the dissolved oxygen to blood hemoglobin; and

removing oxygenated blood out of said photolytic cell and returning the blood to the patient.

8. A method for oxygenating blood from a patient comprising the steps of:

providing blood from a patient into a photolytic cell;

converting water present in the blood into dissolved oxygen in said photolytic cell by a series of photochemical reactions;

converting bicarbonate ions present in the blood into carbonic acid in said photolytic cell;

allowing the dissolved oxygen to bind to hemoglobin located to red blood cells;

allowing the carbonic acid to form carbon dioxide in the photolytic cell;

removing oxygenated blood from the photolytic cell;

removing carbon dioxide in the oxygenated blood; and

returning the oxygenated blood to the patient.

9. The method of claim 4 , wherein the blood provided into the photolytic cell is venous blood.

10. The method of claim 4 , further comprising converting bicarbonate ions present in the blood into carbonic acid in the photolytic cell.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein further comprising converting the carbonic acid to carbon dioxide.

12. The method of claim 4 , wherein further comprising producing carbon dioxide when the dissolved oxygen is bound to the solution.