NSF funds research at Illinois on sustainable biofuels infrastructure

University of Illinois
10/27/08
Diana Yates, Life Sciences Editor217-333-5802; diya@illinois.edu

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The National Science Foundation announced this month that it is funding a new research effort at the University of Illinois aimed at understanding how – and whether it is possible – to build sustainable infrastructure to support the emerging biofuels industry.

The $2 million grant is one of six NSF awards this year to institutions engaged in engineering infrastructure research. The Illinois team will tackle the engineering, social, environmental and economic constraints of developing and maintaining critical engineering infrastructure so as to sustainably support the emerging bio-economy.

The interdisciplinary nature of the effort is reflected in the breadth of expertise of its researchers: civil and environmental engineering professors Ximing Cai (project leader), Yanfeng Ouyang, Imad Al-Qadi and Murugesu Sivapalan (also in geography); agricultural and biological engineering professor Steven Eckhoff; atmospheric sciences professor Atul Jain; agricultural and consumer economics professor Madhu Khanna; natural resources and environmental science professor Gregory McIsaac; and sociology professor Stephen Gasteyer (formerly at Illinois and now at Michigan State University).

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