Industrial & Environmental

The revolution in synthetic biology has enabled innovative manufacture of biofuels and the development of biological processes for the manufacture of bulk and fine chemicals.

Ethanol can be made from cellulosic biomass - plant matter composed of inedible cellulose fibers that form the stems and branches of most plants.

From August 16 to August 22, 2010, Hart Research Associates conducted a nationwide survey among 1,000 adults about attitudes toward the entities involved in the oversight of new scientific and technological advances, awareness of nanotechnology, and awareness of and attitudes toward synthetic biology and two potential applications of the science.

Over the past few years, fuel ethanol production from grains has become a major business of national importance, resulting in increased availability of distillers’ grains (DG) for use in animal feed. A natural question is whether the processing aids used in ethanol manufacture are safe for the animals fed the DG co-product.

The Department of Energy's Assistant Secretary Cathy Zoi announced funding of $24 million for three research groups addressing key hurdles in commercialization of algae at the 2010 World Congress.

Learn about the potential for using algae in a biorefinery to produce biofuels, renewable chemicals, and food ingredients.