In Iowa, researchers at Iowa State University have discovered genetic mutations to cellulose in plants could improve the conversion of cellulosic biomass into biofuels, partly using solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy as part of the study. The study also reports the cellulose produced by the mutated plant could be more efficiently processed into the sugars […]
In Canada, the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador will fund the Centre for Aquaculture and Seafood Development to the tune of $89,500 to set up a demonstration scale facility that will produce biodiesel from fish oil. Pilot scale research used salmon and cod oils brought in from outside the province but the next round of […]
In China, researchers from China Agricultural University and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences are moving into the experimental phase of their joint research to develop cassava and switchgrass for biofuel production. Crop trials have taken place in southwest China and north China with the Swedish scientists using their technology to process the feedstock.
In California, Berkeley researchers may be able to turn tobacco into a viable biofuel feedstock. The project is looking to develop a strain of the crop which is highly efficient at harvesting sleight and converting carbon dioxide to hydrocarbon molecules. The enzyme involved with the process would be cyanobacteria, already used in many biofuels projects.
In Illinois, University of Illinois researchers have developed a new maize hybrid that they report will produce as much as 15% to 20% more biomass given the same amount of fertilizer as commercial hybrids. The hybrid is a mix of both tropical and temperate maize, with increased drought resistance and sugars in the corn stalk, […]
In Ireland, researchers at the University of Galway are participating in an $18.5 million EU-funded project exploring the cultivation of seaweed as a feedstock for biofuel production. The project includes a 1 hectare “plot” at sea that will test various local seaweed varieties for suitability as feedstocks in Co. Kerry as well as in Northern […]
In the Netherlands, researchers from the University of Utrecht teamed with scientists from Dow Chemical have produced ethylene and propylene using a new kind of iron catalyst made of nanoparticles that they developed. Products will not be biodegradable however, even though they are made from renewable resources.
In Michigan, an economist at Michigan State University found that when ethanol prices rose 10 cents per gallon, demand for ethanol fell only 12 percent to 16 percent on average, meaning that a mandate might not be the best way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Instead he suggested incentives for driving less or for buying […]
In Scotland, scientists have developed an “electric leaf”, which is capable of producing a liquid hydrocarbon similar to petrol using electricity generated from renewable resources. This discovery could mean significant yield improvement for algae development by eliminating or reducing the inefficiencies of photosynthesis. The research, entering its second phase, will be applied to cyanobacteria to […]
In Massachusetts, Amherst researchers have discovered a small molecule, called α-cyclodextrin, that behaves the same as cellulose when it is converted to biofuel. Studying this ‘mini-cellulose’ molecule reveals for the first time the chemical reactions that take place in wood and prairie grasses during high-temperature conversion to biofuel. Using the faster computer simulations, they can […]
