In Illinois, a lab for researching biobased chemicals and fuels has finally opened after decades of delay. The Integrated Bioprocessing Research Center at University of Illinois in Urbana opened on September 27, twenty years after its original inception.
“This has been a topic that has cycled from excitement to concern to cautious optimism for a very long time at this university,” school chancellor Robert Jones said at the opening.
The facility consists of 8 units with bioprocessing equipment and is meant to facilitate collaboration between academic research and business. The center was officially announced in 2006 but delayed several times due to budge issues.
The Champaign-Urbana’s workforce is “one of the very few locations anywhere in the world capable of leading the research and innovation on biofuels and products,” Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner said at the opening.