In Massachusetts, research from Environmental Health & Engineering, Inc. (EH&E) shows that greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for ethanol, a biofuel made from corn, are 46% lower than gasoline. Conventional wisdom based on a prior analysis done by EPA had pegged the difference to only 20%. EH&E’s topical review of the latest science shows that this […]
In China, a new algorithm may reduce the need for expensive, time-consuming whole-genome sequencing computations to understand how a microbiome functions. A team led by JING Gongchao of the Qingdao Institute of BioEnergy and Bioprocess Technology (QIBEBT) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and SU Xiaoquan of Qingdao University, published their approach, called Meta-Apo, […]
In Norway, researchers from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology are studying a way to put less pressure on food production and plant and animal life – growing perennial grasses on abandoned cropland for biofuels – and calculating the extent of areas available for this type of grass cultivation. “We can grow perennial grasses […]
In Colorado, researchers developing renewable plastics and exploring new processes for plastics upcycling and recycling technologies will now be able to easily baseline their efforts to current manufacturing practices to understand if their efforts will save energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Benchmark data calculated and compiled at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) provide […]
In the UK, the University of Aberdeen has today launched the UK’s first postgraduate degree program in Energy Transition Systems and Technologies. The new course, which is available to study full-time on campus from September (depending on Covid-19 situation), or part-time online, reinforces and builds upon the city’s reputation as a major international energy center. […]
In Norway, growing perennial grasses on abandoned cropland has the potential to counteract some of the negative impacts of climate change by switching to more biofuels, according to a Norwegian University of Science and Technology research group. Researchers consider increased use of biofuels to be an important part of the solution to achieve reduced CO2 […]
In Minnesota, in what promises to be a catalyst for significant growth in bioindustrial manufacturing and an economic opportunity for Minnesota, the University of Minnesota Board of Regents has unanimously approved agreements for the University’s Twin Cities campus to serve as the primary site of the Bioindustrial Manufacturing And Design Ecosystem (BioMADE), a new, federally […]
In Washington, D.C., a programmable algae cultivator—designed and patented by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory with funding support by the U.S. Department of Energy Bioenergy Technologies Office—is speeding up research to improve algae growth and productivity in outdoor algae farms. The indoor cultivator lets researchers mimic the growth conditions in the warm, dry climate of […]
In the UAE, Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) Dubai has joined forces with Saudi-based engineering group, Jubail Pearl, to establish a long-term partnership that aims to generate sustainable sources of fuel to help diversify the region’s energy supply for a post-oil era. The collaboration was sealed with the recent signing of a Memorandum of Understanding […]
In the UK, a new study from the International Council on Clean Transportation shows blending palm biodiesel in diesel fuel increases NOx emissions, and these effects are especially pronounced with LSD and common rail injection systems. The trend is statistically significant and suggests an increase in NOx emissions of 12%, 17%, and 41% for B30 […]
