INSPIRED by nature, University of Huddersfield scientist Dr Jason Camp is pioneering the use of simple sugars to power chemical reactions. It means that industries such as pharmaceuticals and agro-chemicals will have a renewable, inexpensive and non-toxic method of catalysis.
The project has received financial backing from several leading firms.
Dr Camp, who is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Chemical Sciences at the University’s School of Applied Sciences, has been exploring sugar-powered catalysis for the last six years. He heads a group of scientists at Huddersfield and also the University of Nottingham – where he was previously based – who are carrying out the research. Their findings are being relayed in presentations and articles, with the latest appearing in the new edition of RSC Advances, published by the Royal Society of Chemistry.
The article concludes with the claim that “our study provides the groundwork for a simple technology that opens up exciting opportunities” by harnessing the reducing potential of renewable sugars.
The concept of sugar-powered catalysis has also attracted interest at the House of Commons, when University of Huddersfield chemistry student David Austin – who has been working with Dr Camp – took part in an event showcasing the UK’s best undergraduate research.
Dr Camp said that although biological processes were the basis for his work, the research is pure chemistry. “We are inspired by nature, but we don’t use enzymes or biological processes.”
Sugars have been used for catalysis in the past, said Dr Camp, but techniques such as advanced spectroscopy have enabled him and his co-researchers to make key breakthroughs such as the requirement to minimize oxygen from the system in order to allow for a sugar-powered process.
The researchers have investigated a variety of reducing sugars – including sucrose and fructose – but glucose has become their principal focus. Dr Camp and his team are also examining the use of environmentally-benign solvent that contains no oil-derived substances. To this end, a collaboration has been formed with the multi-national company Circa, which is a pioneer in the processing of cellulose into a novel green solvent.
Dr Camp and his team have also attracted financial backing from a wide range of UK-based companies, including AstraZeneca, Pfizer, GlaxoSmithKline, Vertex and Johnson Matthey.
Posters in Parliament
Sugar-powered catalysis has many potential applications, said Dr Camp, who is currently exploring its use its use the development of novel dyes for solar-cell in collaboration with Dr Elizabeth Gibson of the University of Newcastle.
But he anticipates that agro-chemistry and pharmaceuticals will be the principal industries to use the new technology that he is developing, appreciating the cost and environmental benefits of using sugars.
Learn more: Sugar-power – scientists harness the reducing potential of renewable sugars
The Latest on: Renewable sugars
[google_news title=”” keyword=”Renewable sugars” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
via Google News
The Latest on: Renewable sugars
- Bacteria Engineered for Climate-Neutral Chemicals of the Futureon April 24, 2024 at 5:06 pm
Microbes are a kind of production platform into which biosynthesis modules can be inserted according to the “plug-and-play” principle.
- Engineered Bacteria: A Climate-Neutral Solution for Chemical Productionon April 24, 2024 at 11:56 am
Researchers transform bacteria to produce chemicals from renewable methanol, reducing reliance on fossil fuels ...
- Renewable Energy: The Hottest Investment Space in Africa?on April 24, 2024 at 7:08 am
African Media Agency/- Renewable Energy is one of the hottest investment spaces in Africa and AFSIC – Investing in Africa 2024 will continue to ...
- Govt allows sugar mills to use 6.7 lakh tons of B-heavy molasses for ethanol productionon April 24, 2024 at 6:55 am
The government has allowed sugar mills to use 6.7 lakh tonnes of B-heavy molasses as feedstock for ethanol production in the current year. The move follows the industry's request to the food ministry ...
- Brookfield Renewable Partners LP BEPon April 22, 2024 at 4:59 pm
We sell different types of products and services to both investment professionals and individual investors. These products and services are usually sold through license agreements or subscriptions ...
- Renewable diesel facility to run on Alberta canolaon April 22, 2024 at 11:41 am
The Imperial Strathcona Refinery in Alberta is receiving a 12 per cent tax credit for its $720 million under-construction canola-based renewable diesel ...
- Earth Talk: What about biomass?on April 16, 2024 at 1:00 am
Why hasn’t biomass caught on more as a renewable energy source? – PJ, via email Answer: Biomass is organic material derived from living or recently living organisms like plants, animals and ...
- Seven countries now generate 100% of their electricity from renewable energyon April 15, 2024 at 5:00 pm
Seven countries now generate nearly all of their electricity from renewable energy sources, according to newly compiled figures. Albania, Bhutan, Nepal, Paraguay, Iceland, Ethiopia and the ...
- How Genome Mapping Can Transform Sugarcane Into Green Fuelon April 12, 2024 at 2:25 am
Unveiling sugarcane's genome, scientists set the stage for innovative breeding and renewable carbon sourcing, heralding a new era in agricultural research and sustainability. Researchers have ...
- DG Fuels, BP and Johnson Matthey Team Up to Produce Sustainable Aviation Fuel From Sugar Caneon April 10, 2024 at 8:24 am
Waste biomass made from sugar cane is set to power the next generation of sustainable aviation fuels, with a new $4 billion plant scheduled to be built in the farmlands of Louisiana. Renewable ...
via Bing News