In California, researchers at the University of California San Diego, in collaboration with Algenesis Materials, have produced flip flops made from algae. The scientists, who published their work in a recent issue of Bioresource Technology Reports, used algae oil to produce polyurethane foams that meet material specs for both shoe soles and flip-flops. “The paper […]
In Malaysia, researchers at Universiti Putra Malaysian are using natural fibers made of pineapple leaves for drone frames. The pineapple leaf material has a higher strength to weight ratio compared to plastic and is cheaper than traditional drone frame materials. It also makes the drone partially biodegradable, in case it becomes lost to the user […]
In Canada, the government has invested in producing biodegradable face mask filters to help curb the spread of COVID-19. Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources, the Honourable Seamus O’Regan, has announced a $1.3 million investment in FPInnovations, a non-profit R&D private organization spanning the pulp and paper industry, forest operations, wood products, and bio-sourced products, to […]
In Russia, a student at the National University of Science and Technology MISiS has made a bioplastic from gelatin and sawdust. Valeria Solovyova, who is pursuing a master’s at NUST MISiS’s Technologies and Materials for Digital Production program, created the material using wood waste, gelatin, glycerin, and water. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, she had […]
In Eastern Europe, specialty chemicals distributor Biesterfeld will distribute renewable food and nutrition ingredients produced by Atlanta’s CP Kelco. Under the terms of the deal, Biesterfeld will distribute pectin, carrageenan, xantham gum, gellan gum, and citrus fiber in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia. Biesterfeld has already been providing these products in […]
In Pennsylvania, David Dunham of Bethlehem, PA was sentenced to serve 84 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay over $10.2 million in restitution by United States District Court Judge Jeffrey L. Schmehl. Following a four week trial in April 2019, a federal jury convicted Dunham, owner of […]
In South Dakota, in a Rapid City Journal ad, a Sioux Falls Argus Leader editorial, and a letter to Governor Kristi Noem, South Dakota ethanol leaders said that a transition to “E30 by 2030 Nationwide” would more than double the corn ethanol’s contribution to the state’s economic activity—to $8 billion per year—while saving urban Americans […]
In the UK, the Secretary of State for International Trade has determined the countervailing duties on biodiesel originating in the USA (including biodiesel consigned from Canada) imposed by the following EU instrument is to be transitioned: Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2015/1519 of 14 September 2015 imposing definitive countervailing duties on imports of biodiesel originating in […]
In the Netherlands, Platts reports T2 ethanol prices reached a record high of EUR809/cu m FOB Rotterdam on the back of tight supplies in the ARA region. Spot availability is almost nil, forcing the price up EUR131 in just a week, a shocking turnaround compared to record lows seen in March as a result of […]
In North Dakota, as Blue Flint Ethanol looks for alternative energy sources ahead of the 2022 closure of the nearby coal plant it currently relies upon for steam, the Bismarck Tribune reports that the company is exploring the use of wheat straw and corn stover as alternatives. It recently received a $155,000 grant from the […]
