Biosciences Area

Earth Day 2021: Bioproducts Research Highlights

Every day the average person encounters tens, if not hundreds, of items that are made from petroleum and petroleum-based components. From the keyboard this article was typed with, to our daily grooming products and their containers, and the textiles we wear – petroleum products are everywhere: be it plastics, fragrances, dyes, or additives. Not only is petroleum in limited supply, the refining and production processes can cause air pollution and other environmentally unfriendly effects.

Several programs and research groups within the Biosciences area are working hard to find biologically derived components to find a sustainable and high-quality replacement for those that come from petroleum. Read on for a round-up of just some of the research we are doing to create sustainable bioproducts.

From Smoky Skies to a Green Horizon: Scientists Convert Fire-risk Wood into Biofuel

Reliance on petroleum fuels and raging wildfires: Two separate, large-scale challenges that could be addressed by one scientific breakthrough.

Woody debris (or biomass) is in extremely abundant supply, and disposal, whether an intentional burn or an accidental wildfire, is a major source of air pollution. Researchers from the Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI) and the Advanced Biofuels and Bioproducts Process Development Unit (ABPDU) have collaborated to develop a streamlined and efficient process for converting woody plant matter like forest overgrowth and agricultural waste into liquid biofuel. This research was published recently in the journal ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering.

Women @ the Lab Awards

Four Biosciences employees were selected by Berkeley Lab leadership and the Women Scientists and Engineers Council (WSEC) for recognition as part of the 2020 Women @ the Lab awards. The biennial program, now in its fourth year, spotlights women at the Lab for meritorious professional contributions, leadership, mentorship, and outreach.

Mary Maxon Writes About Bioengineering for the Future

Mary Maxon, Associate Lab Director for Biosciences, co-wrote the cover story for the March/April 2021 edition of The Environmental Law Institute’s (ELI) policy magazine, The Environmental Forum. Maxon and her co-author, David Rejeski, a visiting scholar at ELI, discussed everything related to the bioeconomy: economic activity that is driven by research and innovation in the life sciences and biotechnology, and that is enabled by technological advances in engineering and in computing and information sciences.

The Green Secrets of Goat Poop

Microbes found in the goat gut microbiome could help humans convert plant material into valuable, eco-friendly commodities

Converting the tough fibers and complex sugars in plants into biofuels and other products could be humanity’s ticket to smarter materials, better medicines, and a petroleum-free, sustainable future. But harnessing the chemical commodities stored in these molecules is no simple task. We may take it for granted because our bodies seem to do it automatically, but in reality, every time we eat a vegetable or leafy green, the microbial communities living inside of us are performing an elaborate disassembly line of coordinated chemical reactions to break the plant matter into simple sugars that human cells can use.

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