Sorbic acid has been used extensively as a preservative in a vast array of food. The benefits of sorbates as food preservatives are two-fold: sorbates inhibit a wide spectrum of bacteria, yeasts and m...
Learn More

Efficient fermentation of cellulosic feedstocks is an essential step in the production of biofuel from plant materials. Glucose and xylose are the two most abundant monomeric carbohydrates found in he...
Learn More

The desire to store renewable energy such as solar or wind energy in the form of hydrogen gas, which could substitute for non-renewable fossil fuels, is driving the development of effective water oxid...
Learn More

Increasing crude oil prices and concerns with sustainability have led to a growing interest in producing chemicals and fuels from renewable sources. A major focus for the replacement of petroleum feed...
Learn More

Thermodynamically, a specific voltage is required to split water into hydrogen and oxygen. In practice, the actual potential required to oxidize water is greater than the thermodynamic potential. The ...
Learn More

The finite nature of fossil fuels along with rising oil prices has prompted a need for alternative fuel sources. One alternative involves the conversion of biomass materials into biofuel. But current ...
Learn More

New, renewable sources of transportation fuel and commodity chemicals are needed to meet continuing demand. Biomass has tremendous potential as a renewable resource for the production of fuels and che...
Learn More

New, renewable sources of transportation fuel and commodity chemicals are needed to meet continuing demand. Biomass has tremendous potential as a renewable resource for the production of fuels and che...
Learn More

Ethanol production from cellulosic biomass can make a significant contribution toward decreasing our dependence on fossil fuels.  However, the fermentation of biomass can be problematic.  One bottle...
Learn More

Lignocellulosic biomass is a plant biomass that is made up of cellulose, hemicelluloses and lignin, and is an ideal raw material for use in biofuel production. The premier lignocellulosic biomass crop...
Learn More

Biofuels produced from biomass provide a promising alternative to fossil fuels.  Biomass is an inexpensive, readily available and renewable resource.  However, the process of converting biomass into...
Learn More

Processes that store renewable energy such as wind or solar energy as chemical fuels have the potential to provide a substitute for fossil fuels and ease civilization’s reliance on non-renewable res...
Learn More

Hydrogen is one of the most promising alternative energy sources and is expected to have enormous growth potential due to recent advances in technology.  Currently, hydrogen gases are produced by met...
Learn More

Recently, significant advances have been made in using heterogeneous catalysts for converting biomass-derived compounds to chemicals and fuels.  One such compound, levulinic acid, can be inexpensivel...
Learn More

Alkanes produced from carbohydrates could provide a renewable source of transportation fuel to complement the rapidly growing production of bio-diesel from vegetable oils and animal fats.
Learn More

Some experts in the oil industry and geological fields believe global oil reserves will reach peak production within the next twenty years.  They believe that the annual supply of petroleum-based pro...
Learn More