Baylor Researchers Finish One Phase Of Ethanol Analysis, Start
AnotherFeb. 8, 2006 As Americans deal with higher prices at the
pump, ethanol has emerged as the front-runner to help reduce the
country's "addiction to oil". President Bush's new budget
proposal even calls for a $59 million dollar increase in ethanol
research. But while the high cost of producing ethanol stands as
the major hurdle, research is already underway at Baylor
University to find ways to make the biofuel cheaper to produce.
Dr. Kevin Chambliss, a Baylor chemistry assistant professor, and
Dr. Peter Van Walsum, a Baylor environmental studies associate
professor, have teamed up to study the by-products that are
created when making cellulosic ethanol. The researchers said
Baylor is one of only a handful of universities in the world
conducting this type of analysis. "What we hope to understand
are some basic scientific principles that will let us direct the
development of more efficient processing schemes and ultimately
lower prices at the pu