CSU researchers bridging gaps in biofuel production
Federal mandates require the US boosts its production of renewable fuel to 36 billion gallons per year by 2022 — more than doubling the roughly 15 billion gallons produced currently.
“Biofuels are renewable fuels made from living or recently living organisms,” said Aaron Drenth, a mechanical engineer for the U.S. Air Force. Drenth is a Ph.D. candidate at CSU researching biofuel engine performance.
To meet these mandates researchers at CSU and across the nation are looking at some wild options — from recycling urban waste, to harvesting beetle-killed pine trees, to harnessing the energy of algae. Because, corn ethanol currently dominates the market, many researchers see the most stable solutions arising from alternative field crops. Either way, there is no simple solution to this gap in production.
“These things move more slowly than the public’s demand,” said Courtney Jahn, professor in soil and crop sciences.
