A group of biofuel experts led by Berkeley Lab took inspiration from an extraordinary antifungal molecule made by Streptomyces bacteria to develop a totally new type of fuel that has projected energy density greater than the most advanced heavy-duty fuels used today, including the rocket fuels used by NASA.
Scown to Receive ACS Lectureship Award
Corinne Scown, the Joint BioEnergy Institute’s (JBEI) Vice President for Life-Cycle, Economics and Agronomy and Director of Life-Cycle and Technoeconomic Analysis, has won the 2022 ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering Lectureship Award for the Americas. She was honored for “her contributions integrating emerging technology development with rigorous technoeconomic analysis and life-cycle assessment.”
New Software Tools will Speed up Biojet Fuel Development
Two new publicly available web-based software tools developed at Berkeley Lab, with funding support from the U.S Department of Energy Bioenergy Technologies Office, aim to help researchers and companies quickly test different scenarios and explore viable bio-based fuels and products without ever stepping foot in the lab.
Q&A: The Story Behind Our Infinitely Recyclable Plastic
A multidisciplinary Berkeley Lab team led by the Joint Bioenergy Institute’s Corinne Scown and the Molecular Foundry’s Brett Helms, has been working for several years to develop a game-changing plastic that, unlike traditional plastics, can be recycled indefinitely and is not made from petroleum. Scown and Helms spoke with Berkeley Lab on the inspiration for this plastic, shortfalls in our current recycling systems, and how this ambitious project is enabled by a diverse combination of scientific expertise.
The Future Looks Bright for Infinitely Recyclable Plastic
The average person in the U.S. generates about 100 kg of plastic waste per year, most of which goes straight to a landfill. A team led by the Joint BioEnergy Institute’s (JBEI) Corinne Scown and Jay Keasling and the Molecular Foundry’s Brett Helms and Kristin Persson set out to change that. Less than two years ago, Helms announced the invention of poly(diketoenamine), or PDK, a material that has all the convenient properties of traditional plastics while avoiding the environmental pitfalls. Now, collaborating with researchers from JBEI and Biosciences, the team has released a study that shows what can be accomplished if manufacturers began using PDKs on a large scale.
Was this page useful?
Send
