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New process makes diesel fuel and industrial chemicals from simple sugar
The soaring prices of oil and natural gas have sparked a race to make transportation fuels from plant matter instead of petroleum. Both biodiesel and gasoline containing ethanol are starting to make an impact on the market.   view more (2006-06-30)

MIT: Engineered yeast speeds ethanol production
MIT scientists have engineered yeast that can improve the speed and efficiency of ethanol production, a key component to making biofuels a significant part of the U.S. energy supply.   view more (2006-12-08)

Researchers identify energy gains and environmental impacts of corn ethanol and soybean biodiesel
The first comprehensive analysis of the full life cycles of soybean biodiesel and corn grain ethanol shows that biodiesel has much less of an impact on the environment and a much higher net energy benefit than corn ethanol, but that neither can do much to meet U.S. energy demand.   view more (2006-07-12)

Biofuels Can Replace a Third of Transportation Fuel Needs with Significant Research and Policy Effort
A group of experts in science, engineering and public policy from the Georgia Institute of Technology, Imperial College London and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory recommend a comprehensive research and policy plan aimed at increasing the practicality of using biofuels and biomaterials as a... view more (2006-02-01)

Poison + water = hydrogen. New microbial genome shows how
Take a pot of scalding water, remove all the oxygen, mix in a bit of poisonous carbon monoxide, and add a pinch of hydrogen gas. It sounds like a recipe for a witch's brew. It may be, but it is also the preferred environment for a microbe known as Carboxydothermus hydrogenoformans.   view more (2005-12-05)

Biofuels: More than just ethanol
As the United States looks to alternate fuel sources, ethanol has become one of the front runners. Farmers have begun planting corn in the hopes that its potential new use for corn will be a new income source.   view more (2007-04-06)

The future of biofuels is not in corn
The future of biofuels is not in corn, says a new report released today by Food & Water Watch, the Network for New Energy Choices, and the Vermont Law School Institute for Energy and the Environment.   view more (2007-07-19)

Biofuel cells without the bio cells
Proteins keep cells humming. Some are enzymes that taxi electrons to chemicals outside the cell, to discharge excess energy generated during metabolism. This maintains energy flow in the cell and, in turn, keeps the cell alive.   view more (2006-10-18)

Biofuels: An advisable strategy?
Biofuels have been an increasingly hot topic on the discussion table in the last few years. In 2003 the European Union introduced a Directive suggesting that Member states should increase the share of biofuels in the energy used for transport to 2% by 2005 and 5.75% by 2010.   view more (2007-03-08)

Ecosystems with many plant species produce more and survive threats better
Ecosystems containing many different plant species are not only more productive, they are better able to withstand and recover from climate extremes, pests and disease over long periods, according to a new study.   view more (2006-06-01)

Formation of cellulose fibers tracked for the first time
Cellulose-a fibrous molecule found in all plants-is the most abundant biological material on Earth.   view more (2006-04-21)

MSU biofuels research fills need for new sources
The words are becoming familiar, even if the products aren't: biofuel, biobased, biodiesel, bioethanol.   view more (2006-08-07)

Increase in ethanol production from corn could significantly impact
If projected increases in the use of corn for ethanol production occur, the harm to water quality could be considerable, and water supply problems at the regional and local levels could also arise, says a new report from the National Research Council.   view more (2007-10-11)

Biotech breakthrough could end biodiesel's glycerin glut
With U.S. biodiesel production at an all-time high and a record number of new biodiesel plants under construction, the industry is facing an impending crisis over waste glycerin, the major byproduct of biodiesel production.   view more (2007-06-27)

UW-Madison engineers develop higher-energy liquid-transportation fuel from sugar
Plants absorb carbon dioxide from the air and combine it with water molecules and sunshine to make carbohydrate or sugar. Variations on this process provide fuel for all of life on Earth.   view more (2007-06-21)

Research aims for more efficiency in harvest and handling
Kevin Shinners wants farmers to put less energy into harvesting and handling biofuel crops-less fuel, less time and less labor. As a field machinery specialist, Shinners has worked to improve the efficiency of harvesting forage for animals. Harvesting biomass crops poses similar challenges, he says.   view more (2006-09-28)

Harvesting Machine Driving Mesquite-to-Ethanol Potential
Knocking down mesquite hasn't been a problem in the past. Picking it up and getting it off the land has, said a Texas Agricultural Experiment Station researcher.   view more (2006-10-12)

Biodiesel won't drive down global warming
EU legislation to promote the uptake of biodiesel will not make any difference to global warming, and could potentially result in greater emissions of greenhouse gases than from conventional petroleum derived diesel.   view more (2007-04-23)

Amazon rainforest at risk from initiative to connect South American economies
An unprecedented development plan to link South America's economies through new transportation, energy and telecommunications projects could destroy much of the Amazon rainforest in coming decades, according to a new study by Conservation International (CI) scientist Tim Killeen.   view more (2007-10-02)

How size matters
The beauty of nature is partly due to the uniformity of leaf and flower size in individual plants, and scientists have discovered how plants arrive at these aesthetic proportions.   view more (2007-12-13)

York-Sichuan link to study biodiesel production
Biologists at the University of York have established new research links with Chinese scientists to investigate biodiesel - a cleaner, more environmentally friendly alternative to petroleum.   view more (2007-01-05)

Brazil demonstrating that reducing tropical deforestation is key win-win global warming solution
Tropical deforestation is the source of nearly a fifth of annual, human-induced emissions of heat-trapping gases to the atmosphere.   view more (2007-05-16)

Algae could one day be major hydrogen fuel source
As gas prices continue to soar to record highs, motorists are crying out for an alternative that won't cramp their pocketbooks.   view more (2008-04-02)

Microbial Fuel Cells: Optimization Of The Anode Compartment For Improved Electron Transfer
A microbial fuel cell mimics a biological system, in which bacteria do not directly transfer the energy-rich electrons gained out of the feeding to their characteristic electron acceptor. Instead, the electrons are diverted towards an electrode (anode) and subsequently conducted over a resistance... view more (2003-11-14)

The race for biofuels driving alternative sources of biomass
Researchers have been studying fuels from biomass for years. Now, with growing dependency on foreign oils and an energy-conscious society emerging, biofuels are fast becoming part of a fuel revolution that could reach pumps all across America.   view more (2007-10-29)

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