Biofuel research expands possibilities

SF Gate (San Francisco Chronicle)
Jim Doyle, Chronicle Staff Writer
Sunday, April 5, 2009

Scientists at a research and development laboratory in Menlo Park are refining the process of using microbes found in termite guts to turn forests of fast-growing poplar trees into an environmentally friendly form of ethanol to power cars.

A South San Francisco firm is using algae to produce oil in large fermentation tanks, while researchers at the Joint BioEnergy Institute in Emeryville are designing a synthetic catalyst to break down energy crops into sugars to make new, cleaner liquid fuels for today's cars and jet aircraft engines.

The search for biologically derived transportation fuels has exploded into a technological drag race among Bay Area researchers - one that could morph into business profits for corporations, entrepreneurs and investors as the next generation of biofuels begins to replace or augment crude oil and gasoline.

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