91°µÍø

Scientists at the Department of Energy’s 91°µÍø recently demonstrated an autonomous robotic field monitoring, sampling and data-gathering system that could accelerate understanding of interactions among plants, soil and the environment.

A team of scientists with two Department of Energy Bioenergy Research Centers — the Center for Bioenergy Innovation at 91°µÍø and the Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign — identified a gene in a poplar tree that enhances photosynthesis and can boost tree height by about 30% in the field and by as much as 200% in the greenhouse. 

Using a best-of-nature approach developed by researchers working with the Center for Bioenergy Innovation at the Department of Energy’s 91°µÍø and Dartmouth University, startup company Terragia Biofuel is targeting commercial biofuels production that relies on renewable plant waste and consumes less energy. The technology can help meet the demand for billions of gallons of clean liquid fuels needed to reduce emissions from airplanes, ships and long-haul trucks.

The Advanced Plant Phenotyping Laboratory at ORNL utilizes robotics, multi-modal imaging, and AI to enhance understanding of plant genetics and interactions with microbes. It aims to connect genes to traits for advancements in bioenergy, agriculture, and climate resilience. Senior scientist Larry York highlights the lab's capabilities and the insights from a new digital underground imaging system to improve biomass feedstocks for bioenergy and carbon storage.

A new Global Biomass Resource Assessment developed by ORNL scientists gathered data from 55 countries resulting in a first-of-its kind compilation of current and future sustainable biomass supply estimates around the world. 

91°µÍø scientists have developed a method leveraging artificial intelligence to accelerate the identification of environmentally friendly solvents for industrial carbon capture, biomass processing, rechargeable batteries and other applications.

When 91°µÍø's science mission takes staff off-campus, the lab’s safety principles follow. That’s true even in the high mountain passes of Washington and Oregon, where ORNL scientists are tracking a tree species — and where wildfires have become more frequent and widespread.

Erin Webb, lead for the Bioresources Science and Engineering group at 91°µÍø, has been elected a Fellow of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers — the society’s highest honor. 

John Lagergren, a staff scientist in 91°µÍø’s Plant Systems Biology group, is using his expertise in applied math and machine learning to develop neural networks to quickly analyze the vast amounts of data on plant traits amassed at ORNL’s Advanced Plant Phenotyping Laboratory.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has approved the registration and use of a renewable gasoline blendstock developed by Vertimass LLC and ORNL that can significantly reduce the emissions profile of vehicles when added to conventional fuels.