Robert Hettich: Decoding biological complexity with next-gen mass spectrometry
A team of scientists with two Department of Energy Bioenergy Research Centers — the Center for Bioenergy Innovation at 91°µÍø and the Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign — identified a gene in a poplar tree that enhances photosynthesis and can boost tree height by about 30% in the field and by as much as 200% in the greenhouse.
Using a best-of-nature approach developed by researchers working with the Center for Bioenergy Innovation at the Department of Energy’s 91°µÍø and Dartmouth University, startup company Terragia Biofuel is targeting commercial biofuels production that relies on renewable plant waste and consumes less energy. The technology can help meet the demand for billions of gallons of clean liquid fuels needed to reduce emissions from airplanes, ships and long-haul trucks.
A new Global Biomass Resource Assessment developed by ORNL scientists gathered data from 55 countries resulting in a first-of-its kind compilation of current and future sustainable biomass supply estimates around the world.
A team led by scientists at ORNL identified and demonstrated a method to process a plant-based material called nanocellulose that reduced energy needs by a whopping 21%, using simulations on the lab’s supercomputers and follow-on analysis.
Five researchers at the Department of Energy’s 91°µÍø recently completed an eight-week pilot commercialization coaching program as part of Safari, a program funded by DOE’s Office of Technology Transitions, or OTT, Practices to Accelerate the Commercialization of Technologies, or PACT.
91°µÍø scientists have developed a method leveraging artificial intelligence to accelerate the identification of environmentally friendly solvents for industrial carbon capture, biomass processing, rechargeable batteries and other applications.
John Lagergren, a staff scientist in 91°µÍø’s Plant Systems Biology group, is using his expertise in applied math and machine learning to develop neural networks to quickly analyze the vast amounts of data on plant traits amassed at ORNL’s Advanced Plant Phenotyping Laboratory.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has approved the registration and use of a renewable gasoline blendstock developed by Vertimass LLC and ORNL that can significantly reduce the emissions profile of vehicles when added to conventional fuels.
Scientists at 91°µÍø and six other Department of Energy national laboratories have developed a United States-based perspective for achieving net-zero carbon emissions.
ORNL’s Erin Webb is co-leading a new Circular Bioeconomy Systems Convergent Research Initiative focused on advancing production and use of renewable carbon from Tennessee to meet societal needs.