In North Carolina, researchers are using biotechnology to chip away at barriers to producing biofuels from woody plants and grasses instead of the corn and sugarcane used to make ethanol. NC State’s Forest Biotechnology Group, which has been responsible for several research milestones published this year, summed up biofuel research progress and challenges for a […]
In New Jersey, students at Rutgers-Camden have developed a new software tool called MOST (Metabolic Optimization and Simulation Tool) to create mathematical models of organisms to better predict how they can be engineered to produce desirable products, such as biofuels. The program is similar to other programs but the key difference is that it has […]
In California, researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI) have identified microbial genes that can improve both the tolerance and the production of biogasoline in engineered strains of Escherichia coli. Aindrila Mukhopadhyay, a chemist who directs the host engineering program for JBEI’s Fuels Synthesis Division, led a study in which […]
In South Dakota, South Dakota State University food science professor Padmanaban Krishnan received a four-year grant geared toward getting corn co-products to the food market. With a $576,000 project budget for the Minnesota Corn Growers Association grant, Krishnan will work with the food and ethanol industries with the goal of bringing food-grade dried distiller’s grain (DDG) […]
According to Lux Research, the bio-based materials and chemicals industry is poised to attract nearly $1 billion in investment this year, led notably by later-stage funding rounds. The estimated $974 million investment represents a 28% increase from 2013, suggesting companies that endured the waves of economic disruption have gained maturity and regained investors’ confidence. Lux […]
In Norway, the sea has long been a source of the country’s riches, whether from cod, farmed salmon or oil. Now one researcher from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) researcher hopes to add seaweed to this list as he refines a way to produce “biocrude” from common kelp. Using small quartz tube […]
In Washington state, researchers at Washington State University (WSU) and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) decided to combine iron and palladium into a new catalyst that is expected to significantly increase the economic viability of biofuel production. They added just a pinch of palladium to iron, a recipe that efficiently removes […]
In Illinois, at the Agricultural Research Service’s Bioenergy Research Unit in Peoria, one recent research focus has been on determining how switchgrass plant maturity at harvest affects ethanol yields. Chemical engineer Bruce Dien led a study that evaluated samples of two different switchgrass varieties that were harvested at three different points in plant development and […]
In Missouri, the government of India’s Department of Biotechnology, Indian corporate leaders and Washington University in St. Louis have invested $2.5 million to launch the Indo-US Advanced Bioenergy Consortium for Second Generation Biofuels (IUABC). The IUABC is a joint bi-national center led by Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), the Indian Institute of Technology in Bombay (IITB), […]
In Brazil, the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa), and Evogene signed a joint research agreement for the advancement of castor cultivation in Brazil. The cooperation will primarily focus on technologies for controlling castor-specific diseases as well as practices for castor cultivation in rotation with soybean. The global market for castor oil has tightened over the […]
