I was just wondering if we grow a plant under restricted blue and red light illuminations only, what colour would the leaves show? What percentage of the light would be absorbed and what percentage would be reflected?
The leaf will take that colour which will not absorb that may be red or blue depending on intensity of light falling on it and amount of light refecting from it.around 10-20 % is elliminated and rest are absorbed
In my opinion, there will be no difference to the green color, since these are the colors leaf pigments perceive and respond most of all.
Leaf will not change it color at all after long exposition to this light; but viewed under blue and red light only it will look like dark or even black.
The light absorbance maxima of chlorophyll A are 430 nm (blue light) and 664 nm (red light), of chlorophyll B - 460 nm y 667 nm. That means light around this wavelengths is absorbed extremely well, due to high molar absorption value of chlorophyll. Still some light in this part of specter is not absorbed, but transmitted through leaf or reflected, it could be about 4%-8%, depending on plant specie (chlorophyll concentration and distribution). Chlorophyll has low absorption in green and yellow light (500-630 nm), that´s why leaf appears green under solar light. But if there is no source of green and yellow light - there is nothing to reflect. So only residual reflection of several percents of blue and red light will cause dark or black appearance of leaf.
There is some effect of carotenes and other pigments absorption, but this will not change the general story.
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