In Germany, a research team from the Ruhr University Bochum and the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Energy Conversion showed for the first time that the zinc component of the active center is positively charged and that the catalyst even has two copper-based active centers, giving insight into methanol production. “The condition of the zinc […]
In Nigeria, researchers at the University of Ilorin have developed a biodiesel production process from used cooking oil using waste-iron-filling as the building blocks for a nano-catalyst. Scientists used UCO containing 6.1% free fatty acid as feedstock for the trials. The catalysts showed the effectiveness and relative stability for UCO transesterification over three cycles, demonstrating […]
In California, Stanford researchers conducted the first comprehensive analysis of India’s sugar industry and its impact on water, food and energy resources through the lens of its political economy – that is, how entrenched political interests in sugar production threaten food, water and energy security over time. The results show that a national biofuel policy […]
In India, plastic from used personal protective equipment (PPE) can, and should, be transformed into renewable liquid fuels—according to a new study, published in the peer-reviewed Taylor & Francis journal Biofuels. Experts from The University of Petroleum and Energy Studies have suggested a strategy that could help to mitigate the problem of dumped PPE—currently being […]
In Illinois, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) awarded a $13 million grant to a nationwide project led by Illinois State University aimed at genetically strengthening Thlaspi arvense, commonly known as the weed pennycress and a relative of canola for use in sustainable energy efforts. The grant from the DOE will allow researchers to improve […]
In Iowa, a new federal grant will allow a research team led by Iowa State University, Penn State and Roeslein Alternative Energy to develop new methods of turning biomass and manure into fuel. The five-year, $10 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute for Food and Agriculture will power the Consortium for […]
In Illinois, in a new study, University of Illinois researchers mine the Miscanthus’ vast genomic potential in an effort to speed up the breeding process and maximize its most desirable traits. In conventional breeding, one typical approach is for researchers to grow individuals from a diverse set of populations and select those with the best […]
In China, an interdisciplinary team of scientists in China, the Netherlands, and Germany, rationally designed proton-conducting protein constituent materials that exceeded previously reported proteinaceous (consisting of or containing protein) systems. They developed the structures through stepwise exploration of peptide sequences from intrinsically disordered coils to protein-supercharged polypeptide chimeras. The new design paradigm offers potential for […]
In Brazil, an optical fiber made of agar has been produced at the University of Campinas (UNICAMP) in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. This device is edible, biocompatible and biodegradable. It can be used in vivo for body structure imaging, localized light delivery in phototherapy or optogenetics (e.g., stimulating neurons with light to study […]
In Brazil, scientists from the Federal University of Espírito Santo produced biodiesels using an innovative source of catalysts, a mixture of metal hydroxides: lithium-sodium (LiOH + NaOH) or lithium-potassium (LiOH + KOH) and waste cooking oil from fast food chains and households as the oily raw feedstock. They used the lithium waste due to the […]
