MN DOC grant funds 3M biofuel collaboration with BTI
The 3M corp. will collaborate with the BioTechnology Institute and the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewal Energy Laboratory (NREL) to develop a membrane extraction process for cellulosic-ethanol production through a grant from the Minnesota Department of Commerce.

The long term potential for cellulose-derived ethanol is much greater than that for starch based feedstocks such as corn. However, one of the key barriers to commercial viability of cellulosic ethanol is the low concentration of ethanol from fermentation (~5%) compared to that for starch-based fermentations (12-20%). One aspect of the current cellulose-based process limiting the ethanol concentration is the inhibitors that are present in the fermentation step.

This project will allow for 3M to work with the University of Minnesota BioTechnology Institute and the NREL to evaluate and quantify the technology and economics of using a membrane extraction process for cellulosic-ethanol production. Significantly increasing the ethanol concentration prior to distillation is expected to accelerate near-term commercial viability of cellulosic ethanol production.

Bond and Gralnick report key finding in study on bacteria energy conversion
(CBS News, March 2008) Research by assistant professors Daniel Bond and Jeffrey Gralnick (both Microbiology/BTI) has resulted in a key finding, reported in the March 3 edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, about how bacteria convert organic compounds into electricity. They discovered that riboflavin (commonly known as vitamin B-2) is responsible for much of the energy produced by Shewanella bacteria. The interdisciplinary research team, which included several students, showed that bacteria growing on electrodes naturally produced riboflavin. Because riboflavin was able to carry electrons from the living cells to the electrodes, rates of electricity production increased by 370 percent as riboflavin accumulated.

Bond and Gralnick each received a $300,000 grant from the Office of Naval Research to further explore different aspects of riboflavin in Shewanella bacteria related to corrosion and bioenergy production. Bond?s lab also received a $75,000 exploratory research grant from the NSF Energy for Sustainability program to study a method of measuring the activity of enzyme catalysts in transferring energy during this process.