Project Grant 83603401

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 Department of Energy Office of Science awarded Innosense Corporation a $1.92 million project grant under the Office of Science Financial Assistance Program (CFDA 81.049) to support the development of efficient and cost-effective enzymatic conversion of lignocellulose feedstock to useful bioproducts. The three-year award, issued on February 22, 2021 with a completion date of April 3, 2024, will fund Innosense's work breaking down lignocellulose into bioproducts using novel enzyme...

This Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Integrative Activities (CFDA 47.083) program provides $613,732 to Howard University to develop a dry, waste-free method for separating agricultural biomass into cellulose-rich and lignin-rich fractions. The project aims to investigate the triboelectric charging behaviors of biomass particles to enable tribo-electrostatic separation, allowing the production of cellulose feedstock for biofuels and lignin-based nanofibers for...

This Project Grant from the National Science Foundation's Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships program totaling $275,030 will fund the development of technology to extract cellulosic raw materials from post-consumer textile waste. The awardee, Regenerated Textile Industries LLC of Everett, Washington, will optimize a non-destructive extraction process to convert end-of-life textile waste into high-value cellulosic feedstocks of equal or greater quality than virgin materials at the kilogram...

This National Science Foundation Project Grant of $198,114 supports collaborative research at Michigan State University to develop a low-energy tandem process for fractionating and reversibly preserving lignocellulose using multifunctional aldehyde sulfonic acids. The research will test the hypothesis that aldehyde sulfonic acids can more effectively and selectively fractionate lignocellulose than current mineral/organic acid and aldehyde combinations under mild conditions. It aims to maximize...

This $420,887 Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Mathematical and Physical Sciences program will support research to develop specialized biomaterials for the rapid and sustainable degradation of plant biomass. The principal investigator at the University of Missouri System will immobilize multiple enzymes, including cellulases, lipases, and proteases, onto metal-organic materials (MOMs) to create a 5-in-1 biocatalyst. This biocatalyst will be used to efficiently...

This $2.4 million project grant from the US Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture's Bioproduct Pilot Program (CFDA #10.236) supports the development of a modular bioprocessing system to produce bioplastics from food waste. Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University will lead a consortium including Quasar Energy Group LLC, University of Missouri System, and Iowa State University to establish a 100-liter scale pilot facility. Over three years, the team...

This three-year, $600,000 Project Grant from the National Science Foundation's Engineering program (CFDA 47.041) will fund research at the University of California, Davis to develop a scalable and sustainable process for nano-cellulose production by leveraging the surface activity of hydrophobin bio-surfactants. The goal is to improve the rate and extent of enzymatic hydrolysis of cellulose for conversion into nano-cellulose and value-added fuels and chemicals. Researchers will examine how...

This National Science Foundation (NSF) Division of Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental, and Transport Systems Project Grant for $331,415, awarded on September 1, 2023, aims to develop a novel biocatalytic process for the deconstruction of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastics. The project will explore the use of natural enzymes, such as lipase, to catalyze the alcoholysis of PET in non-aqueous solvents. This approach seeks to improve the efficiency and conversion of plastic waste using...

This National Science Foundation (NSF) Project Grant awarded to Prag LLC through the NSF Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships (CFDA 47.084) program supports the development of a bioreactor system to recycle polystyrene foam waste into an organic fertilizer product. The $274,718 award aims to demonstrate a process for converting the ubiquitous polystyrene waste, which often ends up in landfills or waterways, into a nutrient-rich soil amendment through thermal and biological methods. The...