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WUSTL researchers demonstrate solar-panel-powered microbial electrosynthesis to produce n-butanol from light, CO2 and power

Green Car Congress

Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have discovered a new way to train microbes to make n -butanol. Here we have harnessed the power of microbes to convert carbon dioxide into value-added multi-carbon compounds in a usable biofuel. We hope that it can be a steppingstone for future sustainable solar fuel production.

Solar 319
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$12+M awarded to 4 projects seeking to design crops with ability to fix their own nitrogen; no artificial fertilizers

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it needs to be converted into a form that plants can use. Some plant-like bacteria (cyanobacteria) are able to fix nitrogen using solar energy via specialized cellular machinery. These bacteria are held in root nodules and convert the nitrogen gas found abundantly in the air into nitrogen fertilizer that plants need for growth.

St. Louis 294
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Don’t stop the EV music

Electric Auto Association

The late Jack Rickard of EVTV , a long time member of Gateway Electric Vehicle Association (GEVA), is something of a legend at the St. Louis, Missouri chapter. Solar charging on the agenda Jackie joined her father’s company not long before he became ill. She’s doing a great job continuing his work.”

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USDOT awarding $55M to support purchase of Low-No buses; electric buses and infrastructure

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Because the charging stations will utilize Jacksonville Electric Authority's Solar Smart Power program, the buses will truly have zero emissions. This project is unique in that the buses will be charged during the day to take advantage of the renewable energy made available by the abundant solar and wind energy available on the island.

Purchase 191
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DOE Awards $377 Million in Funding for 46 Energy Frontier Research Centers

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The mission of the EFRCs is to accelerate the rate of scientific breakthroughs needed to create advanced energy technologies for the 21 st century. Dramatically increase our fundamental knowledge of the physical structure of biopolymers in plant cell walls to provide a basis for improved methods for converting biomass into fuels.

Energy 150
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DOE awards $100M in 2nd funding round for 32 Energy Frontier Research Centers

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The centers selected for the second round of funding will help lay the scientific groundwork for fundamental advances in solar energy, electrical energy storage, carbon capture and sequestration, materials and chemistry by design, biosciences, and extreme environments. Argonne-Northwestern Solar Energy Research (ANSER) Center.

Energy 337
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Joule says it has improved the photosynthetic efficiency of its engineered cyanobacteria by nearly 100%

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At the 2014 Society for Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology (SIMB) Annual Meeting in St. Louis, Missouri, Joule reported that its has improved the overall photosynthetic efficiency of its engineered cyanobacteria by nearly 100%, and estimates a maximum 14% energy conversion efficiency in its biomass-to-fuels process.

St. Louis 218