Project Grant 20246702142453
- Integrated Lipid Biofuels LLC was awarded a $650,000 Project Grant from the US Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program. The two-year award will support the company's efforts to develop a process for converting organic waste into biopolymers by synergizing anaerobic digestion and synthetic biology techniques. The SBIR Program aims to stimulate technological innovation through the investment of federal...
- The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, awarded $175,000 under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program to KSE, Inc. of Sunderland, Massachusetts. The award will support KSE's efforts to develop and scale an integrated process for converting lignocellulosic waste streams into 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA) at high selectivity without pre-treatment of biomass compounds. Key activities include improving reactive...
- This $256,000 Project Grant was awarded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) under the Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships (CFDA 47.084) program. The award to Terragia Biofuel Inc., a for-profit organization, aims to develop innovative bioprocessing technologies for converting lignocellulosic biomass into hydrocarbon fuels and products. Specifically, the project is focused on demonstrating the feasibility of a technique called Continuous Evolution with Multiplex Natural Transformation...
- This $1,000,000 Project Grant from the National Science Foundation's Division of Chemistry, under the Mathematical and Physical Sciences program (CFDA 47.049), supports research at New York University to develop methods for converting lignin from pulp and paper waste into useful chemical feedstocks. Principal Investigator Tianning Diao aims to establish a microscopic reverse biosynthesis process using titanium-mediated depolymerization and electrocatalytic methods, drawing inspiration from...
- The National Science Foundation's Engineering program (CFDA 47.041) awarded a $3,000,000 project grant to the University of New Mexico (UNM) to develop a groundbreaking new approach for degrading lignin, a key barrier to the full utilization of woody biomass. The project, titled "TRAILBLAZER: Overcoming the Lignin Barrier for Valorization of Forest Biomass-- A New Paradigm for Mitigation of Catastrophic Wildfires", aims to unlock the potential of wood as a green chemical feedstock by...
- This National Science Foundation Project Grant award of $510,734 supports research at the University of Wyoming to develop genetically engineered bacterial systems for enhanced biodiesel production from lignocellulosic feedstocks. The goal is to program bacterial cells to produce high quantities of triacylglycerol (TAG), a commodity chemical that can be converted to biodiesel and industrial solvents. Specifically, the award will fund work to transform Rhodococcus strains into multicellular...
- This $300,000 Project Grant awarded by the USDA's Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (CFDA 10.310) aims to demonstrate the feasibility of producing chirally pure (R)-3-hydroxybutyrate (R-3HB) from plant waste materials, such as wood and crop leftovers, by modifying Clostridium pathways. The research will create and test two different R-3HB production pathways in Clostridium, then combine and further optimize the approaches to boost R-3HB yields in the bacterium. If successful, this work...
- Visolis, Inc. received a $256,500 project grant award from the Department of Energy Office of Science on February 22, 2021 to support production of renewable aromatic compounds from lignocellulosic feedstocks. The project was conducted in Hayward, California under the Office of Science Financial Assistance Program (CFDA #81.049), which aims to transform understanding of nature and advance U.S. energy and economic security through scientific discoveries and tools. Specifically, the award funded...
- This two-year, $200,000 Project Grant from the National Science Foundation's Division of Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental, and Transport Systems will fund research at the Long Beach Research Foundation to develop multi-activity proteins for improved carbohydrate deconstruction. Specifically, the Foundation will produce and test 85 engineered multi-activity proteins containing two catalytic domains each. These proteins aim to increase biomass conversion for alternative fuels and...
- Federal Grant Award Summary Lignetics, Inc. received a $498,829.48 Project Grant award on January 27, 2026, from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Business Cooperative Services to support the production of advanced biofuels. Under the Bioenergy Program for Advanced Biofuels (CFDA 10.867), the award funds the company's continued manufacturing of renewable transportation fuels derived from biomass feedstocks other than corn kernel starch. Lignetics specializes in innovative advanced...
** AWARDS ISSUED PRIOR TO JANUARY 20, 2025, WERE FUNDED UNDER PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATIONS AND MAY NOT REFLECT THE PRIORITIES AND POLICIES OF THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION.** HOW TO FIND SOLUTIONS TO ACHIEVE THE SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION OF BIOFUEL FROM NONFOOD BIOMASS, SUCH AS THE LIGNOCELLULOSIC MATERIAL OR THE OTHER WASTE STREAMS FROM FOOD PRODUCTION, IS A GRAND CHALLENGE THAT FACES BOTH SCIENTISTS AND POLICY MAKERS. IN THE CENTER OF THIS CHALLENGE LIES THE QUESTION OF HOW TO MAXIMIZE THE ECONOMIC VALUES THAT CAN BE EXTRACTED FROM BIOMASS IN BIOFUEL PRODUCTION.LIGNOCELLULOSIC BIOMASS REPRESENTS THE PRIMARY FEEDSTOCK IN MODERN BIOREFINERIES FOR MAKING BIOFUELS. CELLULOSE (POLYMER OF C6 SUGAR), HEMICELLULOSE (POLYMER OF C5 AND C6 SUGAR), AND LIGNIN ARE THE THREE MAJOR COMPONENTS OF LIGNOCELLULOSE. IN THE PAST TWO DECADES, EXTENSIVE RESEARCH EFFORTS HAVE FOCUSED ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF PROCESSES TO UTILIZE THE CELLULOSE AND THE HEMICELLULOSE COMPONENTS, WHILE LIGNIN, THE AROMATIC POLYMER COMPRISING 15-30% DRY WEIGHT OF THE LIGNOCELLULOSIC BIOMASS, HAS TRADITIONALLY BEEN VIEWED AS A WASTE PRODUCT AND BURNED FOR HEAT AND POWER. WITH A FULL COMMERCIALIZATION OF LIGNOCELLULOSIC BIOFUELS, THE INDUSTRY WOULD PRODUCE ESTIMATED 300 MILLION TONS OF LIGNIN-RICH MATERIAL. THE CURRENT MONEY EQUIVALENT OF LIGNIN IS $0.18/KG, WHILE THE APPROXIMATE VALUE OF LIGNIN USED IN CHEMICAL CONVERSION CAN BE HIGHER THAN $1.08/KG. PROCESSES THAT CAN CONVERT LIGNIN INTO VALUE-ADDED CHEMICALS WOULD DRASTICALLY BOOST THE ECONOMIC VALUES OF LIGNOCELLULOSIC BIOMASS AND THE SUSTAINABILITY OF BIOFUEL PRODUCTION.THIS PROJECT TAKES A 'FROM WASTES TO TREASURE' APPROACH THAT IS BUILT UPON A FDA HV1-CERTIFIED MICROORGANISM THAT WAS ORIGINALLY ISOLATED FROM GARDEN SOIL. THE GOAL IS TO ENGINEER PSEUDOMONAS PUTIDA KT2440 FOR THE BIOPRODUCTION OF VALUE-ADDED CHEMICALS, SUCH AS MONOMERS IN NYLON 6,6 PRODUCTION, FROM AROMATICS THAT CAN BE DERIVED FROM LIGNIN DEGRADATION. THE TEAM EXPECTS BROAD IMPACTS FROM THE RESEARCH OUTCOMES ON BOTH IMPROVING LIGNIN VALORIZATION AND ENHANCING KNOWLEDGE OF MICROBIALMETABOLISM.
Mod # | Description | ReasonForModification | Federal Obligation | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not listed | $649.6k | 5/23/24 |