In Canada, Natural Resources Canada failed to spend $298.6 million that was budgeted for biofuels, green energy, energy efficiency and technology plans last year, yet somehow spent more than $438 million on programs for oil and gas research and market development, including research on how to clean up spills. Of the total, $113 million went […]
In Louisiana, the National Algae Association will be hosting a workshop on Algae Production and networking from January 22-25 in 2015. The workshop is designed to educate and share information on algae strains, commercial algae production processes, equipment and potential markets on the algae industry. They will be focusing on: Nutraceuticals- Omega 2 EPA/DHA Feeds […]
In Connecticut, researchers at UConn have found that the fiber crop Cannabis sativa, known as industrial hemp, has properties that make it viable and even attractive as a raw material, or feedstock, for producing biodiesel. The plant’s ability to grow in infertile soils also reduces the need to grow it on primary croplands, which can […]
In Florida, Buck Rogers surely couldn’t have seen this one coming, but at NASA’s request, University of Florida researchers have figured out how to turn human waste — yes, that kind — into rocket fuel. Adolescent jokes aside, the process finally makes useful something that until now has been collected to burn up on re-entry. […]
In Switzerland, polylactic acid is a degradable plastic used mostly for packaging. To meet the rising demand, ETH researchers have developed an eco-friendly process to make large amounts of lactic acid from glycerol, a waste by-product in the production of biodiesel. The research groups of ETH professors Konrad Hungerbühler and Javier Pérez-Ramírez at the Institute […]
In the UK, a ground breaking research project by the GW4 Alliance aims to clean up water from a Cornish tin mine, using algae to harvest the precious heavy metals and produce biofuel at the same time. GW4 brings together the South West and Wales’ four leading, research-intensive universities: Bath, Bristol, Cardiff and Exeter. Researchers […]
In China, scientists have discovered a bacteria from the guts of a worm that can degrade polyethylene in one step. The research found that at least two strains of a moth larva, known as a waxworm, have gut microbes that could degrade polyethylene without a pretreatment step. The research is being reported in Environmental Science […]
In Indiana, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana has ruled against GS CleanTech in a case the company had mounted against 17 ethanol plants and manufacturers of ethanol production equipment who the company claimed had violated its corn oil patents. The judge ruled four of the company’s patents invalid because it […]
In Massachusetts, a report in MIT’s Technology Review says that falling oil prices are spelling the death knell for cellulosic ethanol. All of the cellulosic ethanol plants that came online this year were planned when oil was over $100 a barrel, compared to $70 now and $115 earlier this year. Lower oil prices could mean […]
In California, two years ago, researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI) engineered Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria to convert glucose into significant quantities of methyl ketones, a class of chemical compounds primarily used for fragrances and flavors, but highly promising as clean, green and renewable blending agents for diesel fuel. […]
