Exploiting the energy potential of biomass high in cellulose and lignin—including grasses, shrubs, husks, bark, yard and mill offal not readily digestible by humans—offers a vast and renewable alt...
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“Rectennas” are antennas that can receive radio signals and rectify them to generate electrical power for wireless power transfer. Potential applications for rectennas range from large-scale power...
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Lignocellulosic biomass is a very desirable feedstock for biofuel production.  If the fermentation process for lignocellulose could be optimized, conversion of this biomass could yield 25 to 50 billi...
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Lignocellulosic biomass is a very desirable feedstock for biofuel production. If the fermentation process for lignocellulose could be optimized, conversion of this biomass could yield 25 to 50 billion...
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Plant biomass represents a vast and renewable source of energy. However, harnessing this energy requires breaking down tough lignin and cellulose cell walls. In nature, certain microbes can deconstruc...
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To recover useful carbohydrates locked in biomass, molecular bonds must be broken while avoiding further reaction of the resulting glucose and xylose sugars. This is a challenge because glucose can de...
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Lignocellulosic biomass is a very desirable feedstock for biofuel production. If the fermentation process could be optimized, conversion of this biomass could yield 25 to 50 billion gallons of ethanol...
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Methods to produce bioethanol from cornstarch or sugarcane are inadequate to meet the global demand for renewable fuels. To be sustainable, biofuel production should rely on abundant, cheap, inedible ...
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Access to fresh water is a pressing geopolitical issue and technological challenge. Desalination is a potentially viable solution considering the abundance of seawater on Earth. While reverse osmosis ...
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Mechanical energy takes many forms in the environment, from ambient vibrations to individual footsteps. It represents a sustainable and largely untapped energy source that could be harnessed to power ...
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Cellulosic biomass has tremendous potential as a renewable resource for the production of fuels and chemicals.  It is especially promising because it is inexpensive and readily available from crop re...
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The rise of alternative energy technologies is driving materials R&D. Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) may come to play an important role, as they are able to produce energy by direct chemical-to-el...
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Many species of Streptomyces are used industrially in the production of medicines, proteins and other fine commodity chemicals. However, the vast majority must be grown on high-cost glucose feedstock ...
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According to the EPA, as of 2015 carbon dioxide and methane comprise about 82% and 10% respectively of greenhouse gas emissions resulting from human activities. Landfill gas is a considerable source ...
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To produce pulp from wood, harsh chemicals are applied during cooking and bleaching mainly because lignin is tough to break down. To make it easier to degrade, Wisconsin researchers discovered how che...
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Distributed energy resources (DER) are small power generators that are typically located near the customer’s load, where energy is used. Small DER produce low emissions, can be manufactured at low c...
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Fuel cells and other types of electrochemical cells rely on platinum cathodes to drive oxygen reduction. Although efficient, platinum cathodes are expensive given the element’s relative scarcity. On...
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Catalysts for organic chemical transformations, in particular those used for alcohol oxidations, are considered to be valuable commodities for the bulk, fine chemical as well as pharmaceutical industr...
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Seismic events produce two types of seismic waves, referred to as P waves and S waves. P waves are relatively easy to detect (or “pick”) with software. S waves travel more slowly and arrive in the...
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Activated (porous) carbon is conventionally produced by pyrolysis (carbonization) of carbon-rich biomass or coal followed by activation/oxidation. Activated carbon produced by this conventional method...
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Zinc oxide (ZnO) nanowires are of tremendous commercial interest because they could help drive the next big advancements in solar cells, flat panel displays and other transparent conductor application...
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Producing biofuel on an industrial scale requires efficient fermentation of cellulosic plant material. Glucose and xylose are two of the most abundant sugars found in biomass. The yeast most commonly ...
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The lignin in corn stalks makes it difficult to process for biomass and harder for animals to digest. Levels are especially high in the tough outer ‘rind’ and vascular bundles of the stem.For this...
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A biomass-derived chemical called HMF (5-hydroxymethylfurfural) can be turned into a variety of industrial molecules. For example, it can be reduced to BHMF or 2,5-bis(hydroxymethyl) furan, an importa...
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Levoglucosenone (LGO) is a highly dehydrated sugar typically derived from cellulose. It is an important, non-petroleum building block chemical with potential uses in a wide range of industrial process...
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