In California, researchers from Stanford and Pennsylvania State universities say microbes that convert electricity into methane gas could become an important source of renewable energy. Researchers at both campuses are raising colonies of microorganisms, called methanogens, which have the remarkable ability to turn electrical energy into pure methane.
In Wisconsin, researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison has been awarded a $7 million grant along with its partners to ethanol from a manure byproduct at a dairy farm. Maple Leaf Dairy has about 4,000 cows. Manure will be broken down to make bedding, fertilizer pellets and biofuels.
In Alabama, Professor Sushil Ahikari, assistant professor of biosystems engineering at Auburn University received a $335,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to conduct a bioenergy research study, focusing on biomass gasification. His research will set up a program called Research Exerpeinces for Undergraduates, allowing 10 students from research universities to spend 10 weeks on […]
In the UK, a study indicates that algae could become a more efficient if engineers note the biological changes in the way the cells absorb light, observed by scientists at the University of London. Their research, published recently in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, indicates that the biological switch happening in blue-green […]
In Spain, researchers from the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid’s Institute for Automobile Research have released a new study that shows how using biodiesel can help reduce GHG emissions in urban transport systems by integrating the fuel’s use into city buses. The study looked specifically at selective catalytic reduction with urea (SCR+urea) and the recirculation of […]
In California, iDiverse announced that it has discovered a yeast gene that when inserted into yeast and properly modulated can increase ethanol production yield by up to 34%. “The gene functions by protecting the yeast against some of the lethal stresses encountered in the bioproduction process,” said John Serbin, Chief Business Officer at iDiverse. “In […]
In Spain, researchers at the University of Murcia are producing biodiesel in a single step using green chemistry, meaning with the use of biocatalysts and green solvents such as ionic liquids and CO2. The production process takes places in a steel column while the vegetable oil, CO2 and methanol are supplied from high pressure tanks […]
In Missouri, a $200,000 grant has opened up a new biofuel research field in Southeastern Missouri designed to test soybeans and sweet sorghum. The grant, coming foam the Delta Regional Authority, the Missouri Research Corp., and the Missouri Department of Agriculture, is sponsoring Southeast Missouri State University as it pioneers the 10-acre test plot to […]
In Canada, Lakehead University professor Pedram Fatehi has received a grant from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council in support of his process to produce biofuels from pulp paper waste. “We’re are not utilizing (that resource)î he says. ìWe are wasting it.” He recently received $120,000 from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council […]
In Canada, a professor from Lakehead University has won a five-year grant for $120,000 from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council to develop biofuels out of liquid waste produced by pulp mills.
