Nanotechnology Research into Biofuels
14 February 2007Nanotechnology research into fuel production took a big leap recently, with an announcement by energy company BP that it has launched a $500 million research project to research biofuels, collaborating with University of California Berkeley and Universtiy of Illinois. This research will principally focus on how to convert corn crops, plant material, algae and switchgrass into fuel.
The money will be used to create the Energy Biosciences Institute. It will focus on all aspects of fuel production, from ensuring that fossil fuels convert to energy with less environmental damage as well as improving oil extraction from wells in a way that does not damage the environment. As everyone knows, there is a worldwide need for energy with low carbon emissions. To achieve this BP has announced a three pronged approach that begins with techniques for better crop production, improved processing technology and new biofuels.
The University of California Berkeley was chosen as one of the participating universities because it is a leader in genetic engineering and in creating microbrial factories from bacteria. This is the domain of Nanotechnology, working at the molecular level in order to create ‘engines of creation.’ The University of California Berkeley also has cutting edge research tools such as the Molecular Foundry and the Advanced Light Source, which are powerful aids in tackling the problem of converting biomass into fuel. Berkeley has also used Nanotechnology in the past in its research into cost-effective solar panel production.
In using Nanotechnology to convert biomass to fuel, the project will focus on several approaches. First it will deal with how to develop better feedstocks, then on how to break down plant material to its constituent building blocks (sugars), and then finally converting the resultant sugars into ethanol. Success in this area will lead the EBI to expand its horizons by looking into using Nanotechnology to create other fuels such as butanol and hydrocarbon fuels.
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