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Fueling the future
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TACKLING THE POLLUTION PROBLEM
In addition to providing alternative energy solutions that will fuel tomorrow's vehicles, ASU's researchers are keenly aware of their role in erasing the fingerprints of the past so that humanity does not leave behind a polluted world, void of natural resources. A sampling of their efforts is listed below:
Photovoltaic Testing Laboratory - ASU Polytechnic is home to one of only three photovoltaic (PV) module testing laboratories in teh wrold, testing and improving the efficiency of solar panels worldwide.
Sustainable Housing - Researchers in ASU's College of Design and Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering are working to design a "zero net energy home" that produces more energy than it uses, using PV modules, a solar cooling strategy and wall panels with solar thermal and PV technology woven into them.
Bioplastics and Biofuels - Metabolic engineering is allowing School of Life Sciences researchers to manipulate the genes of photosynthetic bacteria so that they will convert more of their resources (fueled by light energy) into materials that can be turned into biofuels and bioplastics without the use of petroleum.
Microbial Fuel Cells - ASU Biodesign Institute researchers in the Center for Environmental Biotechnology have developed a microbial fuel cell consisting of microorganisms that "eat" pollutants and transfer that energy into the direct production of electricity.
Clean Water - Ground water containing perchlorate (a component of solid rocket fuel), which cannot be removed by conventional water treatment processes, is not being cleansed via a new Biodesign Institute technology that utilizes bacteria and hydrogen gas to reduce perchlorate to harmless water and chloride ion.
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