In Washington, the Energy Department and USDA announced $10 million for eight research projects aimed at applying biomass genomics to improve promising biofuel feedstocks and drive more efficient, cost-effective energy production. These projects will use genetic mapping to advance sustainable biofuels production by analyzing and seeking to maximize genetic traits like feedstock durability, how tolerant […]
In Colorado, an interdisciplinary team of Colorado State University researchers has received a $2 million National Science Foundation grant to research new routes to the sustainable production of biofuels using photosynthetic bacteria. The team will be researching ways to increase the productivity and sustainability of the cultivation of photosynthetic microbes for greater yields of targeted […]
In Colorado, Navigant Research predicts that biofuel investment will top $69 billion over the next ten years as revenues hit $7.6 billion by 2023. The report predicts that growth will be assisted by policies encouraging blending, and that the advanced pool will be the fastest growing. “Conventional ethanol, derived from corn starch, coarse grains, and […]
In Maryland, the University of Maryland award $3.8 million through the Maryland Industrial Partnerships program to 17 teams. MIPS, a technology acceleration program, grants money matched with company funds to faculty engaged in each project. The one biobased winning project was for $324,439 to Feng Chen, associate professor, to work with HY-TEK Bio to develop […]
In Tennessee, Tennessee State University is demonstrating its mobile biodiesel lab on Thursday that will later be used to show farmers around the state how they can make their own fuel from oilseeds. The theory is that farmers wouldn’t have to buy diesel for their tractors if they dedicated a small portion of their crop […]
In Pennsylvania, researchers led by Penn State are working to identify genes to help jatropha be more drought resistant. Researchers looked at a little known gene — JcPIP1 — because a similar gene in the model plant Arabidopsis is known to play a role in drought response. They also examined JcPIP2, a potential drought response […]
In California, the UCSD Microgravity Team has been accepted into NASA’s Microgravity University program to pursue research involving biofuel combustion in near zero-gravity conditions. Microgravity University, or the Reduced Gravity Student Flight Opportunities Program, offers undergraduate student teams the opportunity to propose, design, and fly their own experiments aboard the “Vomit Comet” aircraft. The UCSD […]
In Germany, biodiesel production is still heavily reliant on rapeseed oil, but the country is diversifying according to a new study by the Union zur Förderung von Oel (UFOP). While 53% of oil comes from rapeseed, 25% now comes from palm oil and an additional 11% for both coconut and soy oil. After the implementation […]
In Pennsylvania, ARS chemist Charles Mullen, lead scientist Akwasi Boateng, and mechanical engineer Neil Goldberg recently filed a patent application for a new system that removes much of the oxygen from bio-oils without introducing catalysts. The three scientists work at the ARS Eastern Regional Research Center in Wyndmoor, Pa. The team conducted their small pilot-scale […]
In Germany, a researcher at the University of Freiburg has found a way to make a species of tree fungus useful for the production of electricity. Biofuel cells produce electricity that is environmentally friendly and conserves resources, for instance from organic waste material. They can use enzymes as catalysts to enable electrochemical reactions that generate […]
