Category Archives: Research

From Crankcase to Gas Tank: New Microwave Method Converts Used Motor Oil Into Fuel

Posted on March 30, 2011 by Laura B.

Read the full story from the American Chemical Society. That dirty motor oil that comes out of your car or truck engine during oil changes could end up in your fuel tank, according to a report presented here today at … Continue reading →

Posted in Biofuels, Research | Leave a comment

Some Ingredients in “Green” Products Come from Petroleum Rather than Natural Sources

Posted on March 30, 2011 by Laura B.

Read the full story from the American Chemical Society. With more and more environmentally conscious consumers choosing “green” products, scientists today reported that the first reality check has revealed that the ingredients in those products may come from a surprising … Continue reading →

Posted in Green Products, Research | Leave a comment

Carbon Labeling: Putting the Power in Consumer’s Hands

Posted on March 29, 2011 by Laura B.

Read the full story from Vanderbilt University. Almost all climate scientists agree that actions must be taken to lower carbon emissions, also known as greenhouse gases, to reduce the risk of damage to the environment and ultimately human health. A … Continue reading →

Posted in Behavior change, Climate Change, Green Business, Research | Leave a comment

A New Process Cleanly Extracts Oil from Tar Sands and Fouled Beaches

Posted on March 17, 2011 by Laura B.

Read the full story from Penn State University. An environmentally friendlier method of separating oil from tar sands has been developed by a team of researchers at Penn State. This method, which utilizes ionic liquids to separate the heavy viscous … Continue reading →

Posted in Environmental Remediation, Research | Leave a comment

Nanotech extends battery life for smartphones, satellites, supercomputers

Posted on March 11, 2011 by Laura B.

Read the full post at SmartPlanet. Like electric cars, the one weak link in the rapidly advancing technology of electronic devices is the battery. As memory capacity grows and processors become faster than ever, the battery remains a large, clunky … Continue reading →

Posted in Computing/Consumer electronics, Illinois, Nanotechnology, Research | 1 Comment

Environmental Impact of Animal Waste

Posted on March 7, 2011 by Laura B.

Read the full story from the American Society of Agronomy. North and South Carolina have seen a steady increase in swine production over the last 15 years. In North Carolina alone, swine production generates approximately a quarter of the state’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Agriculture, Environment, Research | Leave a comment

Study Evaluates the Threat Posed by Cadmium in Children’s Jewelry

Posted on March 7, 2011 by Laura B.

Read the press release. Young children who mouth or swallow jewelry containing cadmium may be exposed to as much as 100 times the recommended maximum exposure limit for the toxic metal, according to research published online March 4 ahead of … Continue reading →

Posted in Environmental Health, Research | Leave a comment

Mapping Human Vulnerability to Climate Change

Posted on March 7, 2011 by Laura B.

Read the press release. Researchers already study how various species of plants and animals migrate in response to climate change. Now, Jason Samson, a PhD candidate in McGill University’s Department of Natural Resource Sciences, has taken the innovative step of … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate Change, Research | Leave a comment

What can 28,000 rubber duckies lost at sea teach us about our oceans?

Posted on March 4, 2011 by Laura B.

Read the full story at Mother Nature Network. In 1992, a shipping crate containing 28,000 plastic bath toys was lost at sea when it fell overboard on its way from Hong Kong to the United States. No one at the … Continue reading →

Posted in Research, Water | Leave a comment

Rising CO2 Is Causing Plants to Release Less Water to the Atmosphere

Posted on March 4, 2011 by Laura B.

Read the press release. As carbon dioxide levels have risen during the last 150 years, the density of pores that allow plants to breathe has dwindled by 34 percent, restricting the amount of water vapor the plants release to the … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate Change, Research | Leave a comment