Researchers at the varsity will employing Diatoms, tiny marine life forms, to produce of cost effective algal bio-fuels besides their exploring their application in semiconductors, biomedical products and health foods.
OSU professor and head of the school of chemical, biological and environmental engineering Greg Rorrer remarked that the grant will support the varsity’s long-term concepts of sustainable future.
"We have shown how diatoms can be used to produce semiconductor materials, chitin fibers for biomedical applications, or the lipids needed to make biofuels.
"We believe that we can produce all of these products in one facility at the same time and move easily from one product to the other," said Rorrer.
The project at OSU will also involve the development of mathematical models to test and perfect the technologies before actually building them in reality.
