News tagged with corn ethanol

Related topics: biofuel , ethanol

Making nature's best better to produce biofuels

If a tree falls in the forest and there are no enzymes to digest it, does it break down?

Biology / Biotechnology

created Feb 01, 2012 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

US looks ahead after ethanol subsidy expires

After a series of bitter political fights, the US Congress allowed a subsidy for ethanol fuel to expire at the end of 2011, ending a program harshly criticized by environmentalists and others.

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created Jan 15, 2012 | popularity 4.4 / 5 (7) | comments 36

Study questions cost-effectiveness of biofuels and their ability to cut fossil fuel use

A new study by economists at Oregon State University questions the cost-effectiveness of biofuels and says they would barely reduce fossil fuel use and would likely increase greenhouse gas emissions.

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created Nov 29, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 26 | with audio podcast

Second-generation ethanol processing cost prohibitive: study

Costs for second-generation ethanol processing, which will ease the stress on corn and sugarcane, are unlikely to be competitive until 2020, according to a unique Queen's University study.

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created Nov 21, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Researchers develop 'super' yeast that turns pine into ethanol

Researchers at the University of Georgia have developed a "super strain" of yeast that can efficiently ferment ethanol from pretreated pine -- one of the most common species of trees in Georgia and the U.S. Their research ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Nov 18, 2011 | popularity 4.3 / 5 (3) | comments 9 | with audio podcast

Generating ethanol from lignocellulose possible, but large cost reductions still needed

The production of ethanol from lignocellulose-rich materials such as wood residues, waste paper, used cardboard and straw cannot yet be achieved at the same efficiency and cost as from corn starch. A cost comparison has concluded ...

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Nov 08, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Dividing corn stover makes ethanol conversion more efficient

(PhysOrg.com) -- Not all parts of a corn stalk are equal, and they shouldn't be treated that way when creating cellulosic ethanol, say Purdue University researchers.

Biology / Biotechnology

created Oct 25, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

U.S. unlikely to hit Renewable Fuel Standard for cellulosic biofuels: report

The biofuel industry will not be able to meet the cellulosic production requirements of the Renewable Fuel Standard without significant advancements in technology or investment, according to a National Academy of Sciences ...

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created Oct 05, 2011 | popularity 3 / 5 (2) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

Study finds more effective way to dry ethanol, reduce costs

(PhysOrg.com) -- Purdue University researchers have found an alternative environmentally friendly and energy-efficient way to dry corn ethanol, and their proof is in the pudding.

Chemistry / Biochemistry

created Sep 14, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 2 | with audio podcast

Pretreatment, proper harvest time boost ethanol from switchgrass

Adding a pretreatment step would allow producers to get more ethanol from switchgrass harvested in the fall, according to a Purdue University study.

Biology / Biotechnology

created Aug 31, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Switch from corn to grass would raise ethanol output, cut emissions

Growing perennial grasses on the least productive farmland now used for corn ethanol production in the U.S. would result in higher overall corn yields, more ethanol output per acre and better groundwater quality, ...

Space & Earth / Environment

created Jul 12, 2011 | popularity 3.7 / 5 (9) | comments 19 | with audio podcast

Pellets reduce costs, but not enough for cellulosic ethanol producers

Despite reducing transportation and handling costs, pelletizing cellulosic biomass would not be cost-effective for ethanol producers, according to a Purdue University study.

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created Nov 16, 2010 | popularity 3.5 / 5 (2) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Grasses have potential as alternate ethanol crop, study finds

Money may not grow on trees, but energy could grow in grass. Researchers at the University of Illinois have completed the first extensive geographic yield and economic analysis of potential bioenergy grass crops in the Midwestern ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Nov 01, 2010 | popularity 3.8 / 5 (4) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Benchtop biofuels: Fine-tuning growth conditions helps cyanobacteria flourish

Cyanobacteria are among the oldest living forms in nature, responsible for generating the atmospheric oxygen we breathe today. Now Hyun Woo Kim and Raveender Vannela, researchers at the Biodesign Institute ...

Biology / Biotechnology

created Jul 01, 2010 | popularity 3.7 / 5 (3) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

Ethanol Production Methods More Efficient Now: Study

(PhysOrg.com) -- A new University of Illinois at Chicago study of facilities that produce most of the nation's ethanol found that the energy needed to make a gallon of the corn-based fuel decreased on average by about 30 ...

Technology / Energy & Green Tech

created May 27, 2010 | popularity 3.6 / 5 (5) | comments 4 | with audio podcast