Science and Enterprise

Tag: biofuels

  • Genetically Altered Algae Increases Biomass for Biofuels

    An Iowa State University biologist has developed a process for genetically altering a strain of algae to increase its biomass content by up to 80 percent. This discovery, which can lead to enhanced production of biofuels from non-food sources, is available for licensing from the university’s technology transfer office. Martin Spalding (pictured right), leads a…

  • National Lab: U.S. Energy, Fossil Fuels Use Up in 2010

    Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California reports total U.S. energy use grew in 2010, particularly in the burning of fossil fuels. The lab’s annual accounting also shows the nation’s overall renewable fuel use in 2010 remained about the same as 2009, but wind energy and biomass power increased. Total energy use in the U.S. grew…

  • ARPA-E Grant Funds Development of Univ. Oil Plant Research

    Arcadia Biosciences Inc. in Davis, California has received a $950,000 grant to develop technology that helps plants produce high levels of oil in their leaves and stems. That technology is based on research conducted at nearby University of California – Davis. Vegetable oil is the most concentrated source of energy made by plants, but is…

  • USDA Funding Forest, Grasses Biofuel Research

    The National Institute of Food and Agriculture, a division of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, announced $137 million in grants for research on biofuels from tall grasses, crop residues, and forest resources. The five-year awards will go to 22 universities and companies, through the lead institutions in Washington, Louisiana, Tennessee, and Iowa. The grants will…

  • DoE Science Review Boosts Transport, Grid, Quicker Payoffs

    The U.S. Department of Energy (DoE) today released its first Quadrennial Technology Review report, an assessment of the Department’s technology research and development portfolios. The report urges the department to focus its R&D more on transportation than stationary energy production, grid modernization, and technologies closer to fruition than is now often the case. The report…

  • Improved Cellulose Processing Developed for Biofuels

    A team of university and industry researchers in Europe and the U.S.  have developed a process to hasten the breakdown of cellulose in waste plant matter for conversion to ethanol. Their findings appear online in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Scientists with the company Novozymes in Davis, California, and Bagsvaerd, Denmark,…

  • More Planning Needed for Water Use in Biofuel Crops

    An overlooked factor in planning for prairie grasses as biofuel feedstocks is their use of water, according to a new study by researchers in the U.S. and Germany. Their findings appear this week in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (paid subscription required). Engineers Praveen Kumar and Phong Le at University of…

  • Small Business Grant Funds University Biodiesel Start-Up

    NextCAT Inc., a Wayne State University start-up company in Detroit, has received a Phase 2 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) award from the National Science Foundation (NSF) of nearly $500,000. The company commercializes catalysts for the production of biodiesel developed at the National Biofuels Energy Laboratory at Wayne State. NextCAT plans to bring to market…

  • Bacterial Process Converts Recycled Newspapers to Biofuel

    Biologists at Tulane University in New Orleans have found a bacterial strain that produces bio-based butanol directly from cellulose in plants and plant byproducts, including old newspapers. The strain of bacteria, called TU-103, is being tested in the lab of Tulane molecular biologist David Mullin, and a patent is pending on the process. Mullin’s lab…

  • Lab Develops Automated DNA Construction Software

    A team of researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California has written a software package that they say streamlines the process of DNA construction. The software, known as j5, is available for free for non-commercial users. DNA construction, also known as DNA cloning or recombinant DNA technology, has become a critical tool of modern…