Articles tagged with Biomass
A new study by RIKEN CSRS shows that biomass from purple photosynthetic marine bacterium Rhodovulum sulfidophilum is an excellent nitrogen fertilizer, effective as inorganic synthetic fertilizers but with lower environmental side effects. The biomass boosts plant growth without altering soil pH or salinity.
Erin Webb, lead at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, elected Fellow of ASABE for significant contributions to sustainable agricultural and forest resource use. Her research focuses on biomass supply chain and logistics, circular agriculture, and renewable energy.
A recent study by the University of California - Riverside found that carbon dioxide is driving an increase in the severity and frequency of wildfires by fueling the growth of plants that become kindling. This process occurs because plants use the extra CO2 to make carbohydrates, leading to an increase in biomass that burns.
Researchers have created a method to make fully recyclable polymers from plant cellulose, which can replace some plastics and reduce plastic pollution. The new polymers have various structures that offer different applications, including high-performance materials for optical, electronic, and biomedical uses.
Scientists monitored seedlings in North Borneo's natural and restored forests, finding low survival rates in logged areas. This suggests that different restoration approaches may have longer-term implications for forest recovery, including carbon sequestration and biodiversity.
International research led by CSU suggests studying root function in tropical forests can improve climate change predictions. Tropical forests contain 30% of global soil carbon, with roots acting as 'carbon banks' that can help mitigate climate change.
Researchers developed a novel solution for Pichia pastoris enzyme production, utilizing cyanobacterial biomass to support efficient and sustainable industrial processes. The study reveals the potential of cyanobacterial biorefineries to generate high-performing enzyme-producing strains.
A new map showing all above-ground biomass in the Brazilian Amazon has been published, derived from a study combining airborne laser scanning, satellite imagery, and forest inventories. The results show an average of 174 metric tons of biomass per hectare and a maximum of 518 tons per hectare.
Air quality in São Paulo fell far below standards and WHO recommendations despite reduced emissions during the pandemic. The study identified four main sources of aerosols: heavy vehicles, soil dust, light vehicles, and local sources, including industrial emissions and fires.
Research suggests that diverse forests can capture approximately 226 Gigatonnes of carbon, but this potential can be achieved by incentivizing community-driven efforts to promote biodiversity. Restoration efforts should include natural diversity of species and sustainable practices.
Researchers at Brookhaven National Laboratory engineered enzymes to modify grass plant cell walls, reducing lignin content and making sugars more accessible. This led to up to 30% more sugar collection through fermentation, enabling potential conversion into biofuels like ethanol.
A new AI-driven mapping study from the University of Copenhagen has discovered a billion tons of hidden biomass in Europe, including trees outside forested areas. The research found that countries like Denmark, Netherlands, and UK have significant tree cover outside forests, which can impact biodiversity and climate models.
Lehigh University researchers have developed a technique using machine learning and advanced spectroscopy to characterize waste feedstocks for gasification-produced hydrogen. This process has the potential to eliminate hazards associated with stored coal waste and reclaim valuable resources, while also emitting fewer pollutants than tr...
A new study finds that human activities are impacting the planet, breaching six planetary boundaries and increasing the risk of triggering dramatic changes. The study highlights the need for a global focus on interactions between boundaries, particularly Climate and Biosphere Integrity.
Scientists have engineered trees to be easier to disassemble into simpler building blocks using callose-enriched wood. This approach increases the efficiency of converting woody plant biomass to fuel and other useful products.
Researchers at Tufts University have developed modified yeast that can efficiently consume agricultural waste biomass sugars, including xylose, arabinose, and cellobiose. This breakthrough enables the production of biofuels, pharmaceuticals, and bioplastics with a significantly reduced carbon footprint.
Acetalization is a feasible and sustainable strategy for biomass valorization, serving as both a synthesis tool and protection mechanism for renewable acetal fuel additives. The latest research advances in catalytic systems for the acetalization of biobased furanic compounds and glycerol derivatives are summarized.
Researchers from Japan and Germany have created an eco-friendly light-emitting electrochemical cell using dendrimers combined with biomass-derived cellulose acetate as the electrolyte and a graphene electrode. The device has a long lifespan of over 1000 hours and is environmentally friendly.
A new method developed by the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior has counted Africa's largest bat colony using GoPro cameras and artificial intelligence. The estimate puts the colony at between 750,000 and 1,000,000 bats, making it the largest for bats by biomass anywhere in the world.
A study by the University of Tsukuba found that changes in F1-hybrid metabolites lead to increased biomass in Arabidopsis plants. The researchers analyzed 202 Arabidopsis lines and found altered production of intermediate metabolites of the TCA cycle in high-heterosis combinations.
A new study analyzed coverage of BECCS in 166 newspaper articles to understand public opinion on the energy technology. The research identified eight key storylines, including Pro-BECCS narratives that emphasized its necessity and Revolutionary technology, alongside Anti-BECCS lines that highlighted environmental concerns.
A new study found that establishing a wildflower meadow in the historic grounds of King's College, Cambridge increased species richness and abundance by three times compared to adjacent lawn. The meadow also reduced greenhouse gas emissions by an estimated 1.36 tonnes CO2-e per hectare per year.
Researchers have discovered that extremophilic bacteria from high-temperature marine environments can be used to remove iron, silicon, and magnesium from asbestos minerals, reducing their toxicity. This finding has the potential to develop new methods for detoxifying and reusing asbestos as a secondary raw material.
Study in Florida Bay reveals that turtlegrass can successfully recruit into open bare sediment following die-off events due to biomass partitioning and efficient oxidation. However, recovery of seagrass meadows takes time, with full recovery taking at least a decade.
A five-year field experiment found that nitrogen addition increases biomass recovery but decreases structural recovery after drought, while annual mowing improves both biomass and structural recovery. The study highlights the importance of dominant species and plant functional groups in determining grassland stability under drought.
A Texas A¼M researcher has received a $3M NSF grant to test 3D printing living matter for substituting petroleum-based plastics in packaging, furniture and construction industries. The project aims to create locally available materials that can generate domestic jobs.
Recent development in identification of oligomeric products from lignin depolymerization reveals understanding of formation causes and potential valorization routes. Common targeted products include monomeric phenols, aromatics, and cycloalkanes.
Researchers develop 'Human Appropriation of Net Primary Production' (HANNP) metric to accurately estimate human impacts on the earth's systems. This new approach starts at the source, measuring the total biomass produced through photosynthesis and comparing it to what humans have appropriated for their own use.
Researchers found that 89% of Dominica's trees sustained damage from Hurricane Maria, but only 10% were immediately killed. The study suggests that forests in hurricane-prone regions can resist extreme weather events due to their adapted structure and composition.
According to a recent study, most biological life falls within these two extreme sizes, with substantial uncertainty surrounding body size and biomass across different environments. The research suggests that this pattern may be due to various factors such as energy efficiency and adaptability.
A new study by Linköping University reveals that climate change alters natural greenhouse gas fluxes from streams and lakes, making landscape carbon sinks less effective. The researchers found that increased precipitation and temperature affect the amount of carbon washed into streams and lakes, leading to greater emissions.
Researchers found that a simple 19th century Secchi disk is effective in monitoring phytoplankton abundance, providing valuable long-term data on ocean changes. The tool's continued use supports scientists studying climate change, ecosystem health, and water quality.
A recent study found that China's cleaner heating policies in northern cities, including Beijing and Tianjin, reduced premature deaths from air pollution by 23,000 in 2021 compared to 2015. The stricter policies led to a significant decrease in fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations.
A recent study found that heatwaves decrease phytoplankton biomass in a boreal lake by reducing the depth of the mixed layer. This reduction limits light and nutrient availability for photosynthesis.
Aston University is setting up the first integrated centre to explore low carbon hydrogen production from biomass conversion. The new research centre will enable the acquisition of state-of-the-art equipment, including gasification, membrane separation and fuel cells.
Scientists used multi-isotope imaging mass spectrometry to identify key contributors to blood vessel obstruction in PAH. The study reveals proline and glucose play a crucial role in forming excess scar tissue, which obstructs blood flow.
Scientists develop macroporous structure to increase accessibility of active sites in single-atom catalysts, achieving high activity in oxidative esterification of furfural. The composite catalyst shows high stability and potential for industrial application in biomass valorization and pharmaceutical manufacturing.
Scientists have revealed the regulatory mechanisms of enzyme production in a filamentous fungus that allows for efficient degradation of plant biomass. The discovery identifies Uge5 as a novel regulatory factor regulating carbohydrate-hydrolyzing enzymes.
A new study suggests that UK woodlands could store nearly twice as much carbon as previously thought, based on a 3D scanning technique and analysis of 815 trees in Wytham Woods. This underestimation has serious implications for climate mitigation, forest protection, and restoration targets.
The River Thames ecosystem has suffered a drastic decline in mussel numbers since the 1960s, with native species dwindling to nearly nothing. The invasive zebra mussel and Asian clam have also taken hold, further threatening biodiversity.
Researchers at Argonne National Laboratory have identified promising new biofuels that can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 60% while improving fuel efficiency or reducing tailpipe emissions. The biofuels, developed using advanced engine design, can be blended with conventional fuels to improve engine performance and meet more ...
Researchers at the University of Tokyo have discovered that plant-derived cellulose nanofibers exhibit high thermal conductivity, potentially replacing environmentally damaging synthetic polymers. The discovery was made using a novel method to align the fibers, allowing for efficient heat transfer.
A new technique combines holographic microscopy with deep learning to follow individual microscopic organisms in the ocean. The method allows for continuous measurement and quantification of micro-zooplankton and feeding events, revealing key interactions between species.
A Danish study reveals that nearly half of the population is unaware of woody biomass as an energy source, highlighting a need for public engagement on its sustainability. The study also shows strong public concerns over biodiversity and climate change, emphasizing the importance of adapting policies to minimize environmental costs.
A recent study in Peru revealed a 50% decline in arthropod biomass following short periods of drought and increased precipitation. Tropical insects are sensitive to both extreme weather events, with rainfall patterns being a key factor in their decline.
A new study suggests that global fish stocks will not be able to recover to sustainable levels without strong actions to mitigate climate change and overfishing. Climate change has reduced fish stocks in 103 of 226 marine regions studied, including Canada, from their historical levels.
Researchers have linked a specific domain of proteins to a cancer trigger in humans, opening up new avenues for selective drug therapies. The discovery was made by identifying four core amino acids called cysteine residues critical to the PAN domain's function.
Scientists have developed a biomass-derived plastic similar to PET that meets the criteria for replacing several current plastics. The new plastic can be produced in one step using inexpensive chemicals and retains its sugar structure, making it easy to degrade.
A recent study published in Environment International found that young adults exposed to higher levels of ambient and household air pollution had poorer lung function. Household air pollution from unvented biomass stoves was particularly detrimental, causing a significant decrease in lung capacity.
A study from Washington University in St. Louis highlights the importance of spatial aspects of biodiversity for healthy forest functioning. The research shows that tree beta diversity, a measure of site-to-site variation in species composition, is stronger than other components of biodiversity at larger scales.
Research reveals that multi-species forest plantations outperform monocultures in terms of tree height, width, and biomass production. This is attributed to functional complementarity between species, which enhances resource use efficiency.
New research uses surfboard samples to analyze seasonal changes in phytoplankton, a crucial component of ocean food chains. The study finds that phytoplankton levels nearshore and offshore are similar in autumn, winter and spring, but higher nearshore during summer months.
The Amazon rainforest is experiencing a decline in resilience, which could trigger dieback and have severe consequences for the environment. The study found that resilience has dropped consistently since the early 2000s, with parts of the forest losing resilience faster due to deforestation and climate change.
Researchers have developed a sustainable methodology to utilize biomass waste for efficient remediation of antibiotic pollution. Fe-contaminated biomass waste ferns are used to synthesize highly active single atom catalysts, demonstrating an appealing strategy for pollutant control and other applications.
Research from satellite data analysis suggests that three-quarters of the Amazon forest has lost its ability to recover from perturbations since the early 2000s. This loss of resilience increases the risk of dieback and contributes to global warming, highlighting the urgent need for limiting logging and greenhouse gas emissions.
Scientists identified a new plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) that enhances duckweed biomass productivity by 2.7-fold, increasing photosynthesis and wastewater treatment efficiency. The molecular mechanism suggests that organic compounds are transferred from the bacteria to duckweed, triggering an increase in photosynthetic activity.
A team of scientists at KAUST has created adjustable and biodegradable nanofiltration membranes from date seeds using an environmentally friendly process. The new membranes demonstrated excellent performance in oil and solvent filtration experiments, outperforming traditional methods.
The study found that the distinctive pattern on the underside of the leaves is crucial for their size and strength. The unique vascular structure allows the plants to occupy a large surface area while maintaining low biomass.
Researchers at the University of Delaware have developed a low-pressure method to convert industrially processed biomass into high-performance plastics and valuable chemicals. The process uses glycerin as a solvent instead of methanol, reducing costs and environmental impact.
A large-scale international study found that simple health assessments can identify people with chronic lung conditions like COPD. The screening tools were effective in diverse low- and middle-income settings, highlighting a pressing need for global awareness and early diagnosis.