TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - INORGANIC CHEMISTRY - Preferred Components: The photoactive material further comprises: a first photoactive material for splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen; and a second photoactive material for reducing carbon dioxide into water and methane. The photoactive material comprises: photocatalytic capped colloidal nanocrystals and semiconductor nanocrystals; or photocatalytic capped colloidal nanocrystals disposed on a substrate. The photocatalytic capped colloidal nanocrystals are in a tetrapod, core/shell, nanorod, nanowire, nanospring, or carbon nanotube configuration. The substrate is porous. The second photoactive material comprises photocatalytic capped colloidal nanocrystals. The photocatalytic capped colloidal nanocrystals comprise at least one semiconductor nanocrystal and at least one inorganic capping agent. The photocatalytic capped colloidal nanocrystals comprise a reduction inorganic capping agent and an oxidation inorganic capping agent. Preferred Method: The photoactive material absorbs light for producing charge carriers to accelerate redox reactions and prevent charge carriers recombination. The semiconductor nanocrystals in the first photoactive material absorb light at a different wavelength than a bulk material of the first photoactive material. The semiconductor nanocrystals in the first photoactive material absorb light at a shorter wavelength than a bulk material of the first photoactive material. The emitted light has a minimum energy of 2.1 eV. The method further comprises: a second permeable membrane in the gas collecting chamber that transfers oxygen to a storage tank; and substituting an organic capping agent with an inorganic capping agent by mixing organic capped semiconductor nanocrystals with an inorganic capping agent, where the organic capping agent is released. The photocatalytic capped colloidal nanocrystals have a band gap of at least 1.33 eV. The photocatalytic capped colloidal nanocrystals have a band gap of 2.0-2.4 eV. In the method an energy gap of the seminconductor nanocrystals within the first photoactive material is large enough to split the water into hydrogen and oxygen and small enough to absorb light wavelengths incident upon the surface of the earth. The inorganic capping agent is dissolved in a polar solvent. The organic capped semiconductor nanocrystals are dissolved in a nonpolar solvent.