Biomass to Gas: The Road to Synthetic Fuels

By Mick Kulikowski

Create liquid fuels out of biomass products like wood waste and sawdust. Prove that this biofuel production technology can be performed on a larger scale than just the lab bench. And then show that the process is cheaper than coaxing ethanol from crops like corn.

These are the goals behind a three-year, $3.2 million research project funded by the U.S. Dept. of Energy that combines the efforts of North Carolina State University, RTI International and the University of Utah. The project – one of the first tangible outcomes of the newly formed Research Triangle Energy Consortium – combines the talents of Drs. Hasan Jameel and Steve Kelley from NC State's Department of Wood and Paper Science and Drs. Henry Lamb and Steve Peretti from NC State's Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering.