The predators of crop plants, such as the corn borer, are a nuisance for farmers. Where the larvae are at work, hardly a leaf remains. Usually, only pesticides help to control the pest. In the EU project OLEFINE, a European research association, which includes the Fraunhofer Institute for Building Physics IBP in Stuttgart, hopes to find a sustainable alternative to solve the problem.
Tree sap contains important ingredients for food or pharmaceutical industry. Besides minerals and nutrients, it is the microorganisms, especially yeasts, that make the sugar-rich sap interesting for biotechnologists. These yeasts produce important enzymes such as lipases, which digest fat, or plant substances such as the carotenoid astaxanthin. Astaxanthin is extracted from the tree yeast Phaffia rhodozyma, for example, and used as an additive in fish feed, which later gives the salmon its distinctive color.
In agriculture, phosphorus as a fertilizer contributes to higher yields. In aquacultures, the element also has this function as a fertilizer or feed additive. While phosphorus fertilization in agriculture is strictly regulated, there are no such regulations for aquacultures.
Conventional combustion engines will continue to play a role in transportation for some time to come. However, in order to achieve the climate protection goals, the fuels for these engines must not come from fossil sources. At the same time, biofuels should not compete with food and animal feed cultivation. One possibility is biofuels made from residual or waste materials. To this end, researchers at the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences (HAW) have now developed a production process that uses the fat from a deep fryer and hydrogen.
It is a big step on the way away from crude oil and towards a bio-based future: The chemical park Leuna, steeped in tradition, will become the site of an industrial biorefinery. Finnish group UPM, one of the world's leading manufacturers of paper, pulp and wood products, announced the plans on 30 January 2020. The company will invest the impressive sum of 550 million euros in the construction of the plant. The biorefinery will produce wood-based biochemicals.
Plastic films account for a large proportion of packaging waste, including in the food sector. Sustainable alternatives face the challenge of having to meet numerous requirements for a packaging material.
The custom-made, minimalist cell that is viable but in which only selected processes take place is the dream of many researchers in the field of synthetic biology. It could be used to understand biological processes even better, but above all, it would be a valuable tool for biotechnology.
Pentylene glycol is a moisturizing agent that is contained in almost all creams. The divalent alcohol is odorless and colorless. Compared to the common alcohol ethanol, the so-called diol ensures that the skin optimally binds moisture and active agents. At the same time, it acts as an antimicrobial and thus keeps bacteria away. Pentylene glycol is therefore a natural preservative. To date, however, pentylene glycol has been obtained almost exclusively from natural gas and crude oil.
Every year, 120 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) are released worldwide through the so-called soil and vegetation respiration. Plants simultaneously bind about 123 gigatons of CO2. However, this near-balance is disturbed by the burning of fossil fuels - with serious consequences for the climate. Researchers around the world are therefore looking for ways to curb the increase of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
In 2019, the PROPHECY research project gained insights into what happens at the molecular level during artificial photosynthesis, i.e. when sunlight and carbon dioxide are used as the starting materials for a chemical reaction. For instance, methane and hydrogen can be produced in this way. By 2023, the follow-up project PRODIGY is expected to expand the range of possible products by further deepening the understanding of the molecular processes of such reactions.