The US Department of Energy will be funding an Energy Frontier Research Center (EFRC) at Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) to focus on studying plant cells for better biomass fuels.

The DOE plans to fund the Penn State EFRC for $21 million over five years. To be called the Center for Lignocellulose Structure and Formation, the Center’s efforts will be focused on increasing what is known of the physical structure of the biopolymers in plant cell walls and improve methods for converting plant biomass into fuel. The funding for this center is contained in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

Nanoscale investigations into the physical structure of lignocellulose--the part of plants composed of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin--will reveal the rules and principles behind the plant's manufacture of this bio-polymer. Researchers will be looking for the "rules of assembly" for the plant wall. These include cellulose synthesis, lignocellulose assembly, and the relationship between nanoscale structure and macroscale properties, including porosity and plant cell wall mechanics.

The Center has planned collaboration with researchers at North Carolina State University and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.


-  Katrice R. Jalbuena

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Sources:

¹ http://live.psu.edu/story/39459
² http://www.psu.edu/