Researchers in the college’s department of paper and bioprocess engineering are experimenting with different strains of bacteria that can ferment sugars extracted from wood into biobutanol that can be pumped into automobile gas tanks. They believe that biobutanol — more efficient than ethanol in producing energy and easier to add to the existing gasoline distribution infrastructure — could be the emerging biofuel of the future.
Certain lichens can break down the infectious proteins responsible for chronic wasting disease, a troubling neurological disease fatal to wild deer and elk and spreading throughout the United States and Canada, according to U.S. Geological Survey research published in the journal PLoS ONE.
GE unveiled its latest wind turbine technology, the 1.6-100, at the American Wind Energy Association’s (AWEA) Windpower 2011 Conference & Exhibition. The company has already secured nearly 630 megawatts of commitments for the evolutionary 1.6-100, which has been designed for increased performance in areas with lower wind resources
EPA has developed three options to address contaminated soil at the former lagoons and has selected excavation and off-site disposal of the contaminated soil as its preferred alternative.
Klaus Reichardt, CEO of Waterless Co., said his conclusion is based on a new book, "The Big Thirst," by Charles Fishman.
Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin signed into law a bill that requires manufacturers of mercury-containing lamps to establish and finance a recycling program for spent bulbs from residents and small businesses.
Mitigating damage from environmental problems is a daunting task, especially considering the scope of the project. Despite the great size of the problems facing the environment, the sheer size of these issues can leave those in a position to do a little something about it feeling paralyzed. But for those used to taking on the Earth’s biggest challenges – literally oceans and mountains – pursuing relief after such disasters is all in a day’s work.
An air quality study near Marcellus Shale natural gas operations in Bradford, Lycoming, Sullivan and Tioga counties in Pennsylvania found no emission levels that would pose a public health concern, according to a report released by the state’s Department of Environmental Protection.
According to an article in Nature, researchers have spotted signs of recovery in the ozone hole above Antarctica. These first signs of human-caused shrinkage come 22 years after the Montreal Protocol, an international agreement that banned the use of ozone-depleting chloroflurocarbons.
A new computer model of the Gulf of Mexico in the period after the oil spill provides insights into how underwater currents may have primed marine microorganisms to degrade the oil.
Chevrolet Certified Service has outlined 12 tips that consumers can use to get more miles per gallon, no matter what type of vehicle they drive.
energyOrbit, a cloud-computing company in the Demand Side Management sector, announced the successful Implementation and roll out of energyOrbit at Santee Cooper, one of the country’s largest public utilities.
The World Bank’s board of directors has approved a $200 million loan to finance investments in energy-saving programs in industrial companies, municipalities and municipal-owned companies, as well as energy service companies in Ukraine, reports the World Bank on its website.
The Project Torpedalo team used Autodesk Digital Prototyping software to design, visualize and simulate the carbon fiber boat that will compete in the Woodvale Challenge Atlantic Rowing Race 2011. The race starts Dec. 4 and follows a course across the Atlantic Ocean from the Canary Islands to the finish line in Barbados.
The civil penalty is the largest amount to be paid in a federal enforcement action involving a concentrated animal feeding operation.
Forty percent of the energy to power the General Motors Orion Assembly Plant will come from burning landfill gas created nearby.
Radionuclides in seawater have been reported from the Fukushima plant's discharge canals, from coastal waters five to 10 kilometers south of the plant, and from 30 kilometers offshore, that are at least an order of magnitude higher than the highest levels in 1986 in the Baltic and Black Seas, the two ocean water bodies closest to Chernobyl.
The study details 12 technologies and 36 projects that convert wood to fuels including ethanol, butanol, diesel, gasoline, and jet fuel.
Advocates of the biofuels industry sent Congress a letter urging lawmakers "to stand firm in the face of calls to waive or repeal the groundbreaking biofuels provisions included in the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA), including the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS)."
The U.S. Conference of Mayors is hosting the preliminary round of the 2011 Best Tasting City Water in America competition on Friday, May 20 at its headquarter office in Washington, D.C.