Food

The production of microalgae as a feedstock for refining into biodiesel requires optimization in the design of bioreactors. This technology provides that optimization by increasing the production of algae by maximizing the presence of the distributed solar energy during daylight and also providing the use of artificial lighting during the nonavailability periods of solar energy. Gas is injected in the algal slurry at the bottom of the bioreactor and travels to the top where it is separated from the liquid.

Background: Polylactic acid (PLA) is growing rapidly in popularity as an alternative to petroleum-derived plastics for packaging and other applications. It is biodegradable thermoplastic and derived from renewable resources. However there are characteristics associated with PLA that limit its workability. Particularly the slow crystallization rate of PLA makes it difficult to process for injection molding and extruding when compared with many other thermoplastics. Nucelating agents are known to increase crystallization rates and in fact many have been explored for use with PLA.

This solar oven is skillfully designed easily assembled and remarkably effective. You can download simple straightforward plans that will help you build your own solar oven. No expensive materials or tools are required. Our design has several advantages over other designs. The triangular shape of the oven helps capture sunlight in all seasons; our design allows full east-to-west exposure without rotating the oven. The beehive door prevents heat loss and allows the oven to accommodate large items such as stock pots turkey roasters and pizza pans.

Summary: Ethanol is a popular alternative to fossil fuels. The state of the art is that fungi such as the yeast Saccharomyces Cerevisiae can ferment ethanol from 6-carbon sugars typically glucose which is found in corn kernels and sugar cane. It is desirable that fungi can ferment 5-carbon sugars such as xylose and arabinose. These are found in some non-edible sources such as the corn cob husks and hardwoods. Once the fungi can ferment 5-carbon sugars we can use the cob and husks for fuel and use the kernels for food.

Plant biomass represents a vast and renewable source of energy. However harnessing this energy requires breaking down tough lignin and cellulose cell walls. In nature certain microbes can deconstruct biomass into simple sugars by secreting combinations of enzymes. Two organisms that utilize cellulose are Clostridium thermocellum and Trichoderma reesei. Both are well-known and relied upon in the biomass field. Yet research suggests another microorganism of the Streptomyces bacteria group may hold previously unrecognized potential.

Background: Zinc and copper ions both play an important role in biological systems and in means of everyday life. The zinc ion is the second most abundant heavy metal ion and plays an important role on the cellular level. But zinc is also a well-known metal pollutant of the environment and it is a common contaminant in agriculture and food waste. Like zinc copper as also been identified as a significant environmental pollutant. Therefore the ability to be able to detect zinc and copper ions is very important because of environment and biological analyses.

Background: Production of alternative fuels such as biodiesel is on the rise around the world and in the U.S due to a strong and growing desire to reduce dependency on petroleum derived diesel fuel and its unstable pricing. The acceptance of biodiesel has been slowed due to its higher cost relative to petroleum-derived diesel. The higher cost of biodiesel is directly related to the cost of feedstock used for biodiesel production which is often derived from crops also used for food.

Background: Traditionally landfills have been a common method of waste disposal. Unfortunately landfills produce large amounts of hazardous gasses and tend to pollute underground water supplies surface streams and wells. Furthermore due to the slow stabilization of waste landfills may not be used for other purposes for long periods of time and are thus a large waste of land particularly in metropolitan areas. Other approaches to waste disposal use anaerobic digestion of organic waste. Current methods of anaerobic digestion involve pumping liquid between bioreactors.

Toxic substances pose a huge threat to human health and the environment. The approach for containing toxic substances encompasses a wide range of technologies that include personal protective equipment for workers or military personnel geomembranes for landfill liners and caps sealants for surfaces containing lead paint and architectural vapor barriers to protect buildings from the intrusion of radon or volatile organic compounds.

Background: Succinate is presently manufactured in an expensive process from petrochemicals. Though researchers have previously managed to produce succinate using metabolic pathways none of these methods have approached the product yield of nonrenewable sources. As a result petroleum-based production methods – dependent upon fluctuations in oil prices - have dominated the market. Technology Description: This invention is a process that takes advantage of metabolic pathways in Escherichia coli to produce succinate in a renewable environmentally-friendly and efficient manner.