Finding fuels of the future

The Alton Telegraph
November 29, 2008 - 9:28 PM
By LAURA GRIFFITH
The Telegraph

SIUE center on leading edge of ethanol research

EDITOR'S NOTE: This is the first of three parts on the growing importance of ethanol production in our area and an increasing debate about the viability of the effort.

As the population of the Earth grows and demand for energy increases, more effort is put into the research of alternative fuels - and more fuel is added to a broader debate.

The National Corn-to-Ethanol Research Center on the campus of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville has been open for five years and is leading the charge in ethanol research and workforce development and training in the field.

The nonprofit center includes both dry-grind and wet mill capabilities in its pilot plant, which make it one of a kind, as well as a fermentation research lab, an analytical lab and a training program, said Jack Ballinger, education and workforce development director at NCERC.

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