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Many enzymes currently used in biofuel production are derived from species that thrive at room temperature to nearly body temperature. The conversion process at these temperatures takes time, during which contaminants can reduce the final yield. Published online Oct. 2 in Nature Biotechnology, an international team of scientists compared the finished genomes of fungi that thrive in high-temperature environments above 45°C and whose cellulases would therefore be useful for accelerating the biofuel production process.

Joint BioEnergy Institute researchers have identified a terpene called bisabolane as a potential biofuel for replacing diesel fuel. The researchers have also engineered two strains of microbes -- a bacteria and a yeast -- that can be used in the biosynthetic production of this clean, green, renewable and domestic alternative to diesel fuel.

President Obama has named two Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory researchers, theoretical physicist Christian Bauer and condensed-matter physicist Feng Wang, among the 13 Department of Energy scientists who are recipients of the 2011 Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers. This year's 94 winners were nominated by 14 government agencies. The awards continue research funding for up to five years and are considered the US government's highest honor to young scientists.

Lithium-ion batteries power everything from smart phones to electric cars, but especially when it comes to lowering the cost and extending the range of all-electric vehicles, they need to store a lot more energy. The critical component for energy storage is the anode, and scientists at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have developed a new anode material that can absorb eight times the lithium and has far greater energy capacity than today's designs.

Lessons to be learned from nature could lead to the development of an artificial version of photosynthesis that would provide us with an absolutely clean and virtually inexhaustible energy source, says Berkeley Lab photosynthesis authority Graham Fleming and three international colleagues.